First, could you tell us a bit more about the physical condition improvement equipment standard? While there is a broad range of preventive treatment products (health products) on the market, there is no standard from which to choose from, which leads to many consumers buying whatever they feel is right in the spur of the moment. This system has been put in place to allow consumers to purchase products with trust and peace of mind by certifying physical condition improvement equipment as having reached a certain standard based on preventive treatment product safety and feature testing. Is the concept of physical condition improvement products something that has always been on your mind? That’s right. I fi rst turned my mind to this when I started becoming involved with medical devices back in 2010. The extension of a healthy life expectancy is an issue Japan will face in the years to come. For this reason, in addition to medical devices for treating illnesses, at-home preventive treatment products will serve a much greater role in our lives in the future. No one besides us at The Japan Home-Health Apparatus Industrial Association plays a closer role to that of consumers in guaranteeing the safety, reliability and eff ectiveness of preventive treatment products leading to greater life expectancies. I hear it took three years to establish this scheme. An authorization system based on an autonomous standard requires a broad range of terms, guidelines and defi nitions, among other materials. While our products are developed independently, this certifi cation system has been developed as a collaborative eff ort with experts in the fi eld, government authorities and related associations. While the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare is responsible for overseeing the eff ect of devices, the Ministry of Trade, Economy and Industry exercises jurisdiction of JIS product standards, and it took us three years of going back and forth between these two Ministries before fi nally being given the go-ahead. Is there a strict inspection/screening process to receive certifi cation? A strict inspection and screening process is essential to ensuring that only highly accurate products that consumers can rely on are put on the market. Products are screened by persons with expert knowledge of physics and medical science. However, so as to not let the fi rst two to three years go to waste, we will look to providing robust guidance on how physical condition improvement products can become certifi ed by having applicants submit additional materials, requesting product improvements, and so forth. What benefi ts are there to becoming certifi ed? Well, to use wearable devices as an example, products by diff erent manufacturers and diff erent product models often produce diff erent results, even if worn by the same person. While company A’s products may show results in the normal range, company B’s products could show abnormal results. For a consumer, you want to be able to trust the product you’re using, right? Rather than a product that is not certifi ed as a physical condition improvement product, a product that has a high level of accuracy demonstrated by clearing the strict certifi cation standards in place is sure to provide the consumer with greater peace of mind. We had over ten companies apply for the fi rst physical condition improvement product screening. Looking ahead, we hope to help further extend Japan’s average life expectancy by increasing the number of products and companies applying for, and becoming certifi ed under this scheme in an eff ort to facilitate consumers looking to purchase reliable preventive treatment products. The physical condition improvement equipment standard is due to start in earnest in 2019. We took some time out to speak with Mr. Tomizo Yamamoto, who played a leading role in the development of this scheme. In recognition of his social contributions and his company.s outstanding efforts in product development, Mr. Yamamoto was elected in the Kansai division as the “EY Entrepreneur Of The Year Japan 2018”. A criteria for consumers to choose health products with confidence A Physical condition improvement equipment standard has now been established! Japan Self-care Research Association News Mr. Tomizo Yamamoto (CEO of the Yamamoto Corporation/Chairman of The Japan Home-Health Apparatus Industrial Association) 10