This Biosensor Patch Can Help Monitor Your Health By Absorbing Sweat

Constantly keeping an eye on your health may be a difficult task, however, it may currently be more profitable than you think when it comes to this battery-free biosensor patch that measures your health using your own sweat.

Most advanced level biosensors these days still need highly complicated circuits to operate, which may cost more to produce a device and thus lower its need. Other biosensors may rely on colour-coded systems, which users may find difficulties interpreting. As per the new technological product, it was generated by Northwestern University’s researchers and was lately disclosed via Science Advances journal. The new biosensor is capable of sending health information to your smartphones or devices that feature near field communication. And where does the health data comes from? The device absorbs your sweat and determines that of course.

Cotton swabs are usually used on similar devices to absorb users' sweat, however, when it comes to this new device, your sweat will be absorbed into a system or pores which will be transferred into various chambers inside the biosensor patch. Every specific biomarker will be measured in those chambers, for example, glucose level, hydration status, and PH balance, etc. and also other medical types of biological data that is essential to your health.

According to Professor John Rogers – Northwestern University’s physical chemist and material scientist – stated that the device brought chemical and fluids analysis to the realm of a skin-interfaced wearable that could work in real-time in the field. As the data mentioned above could be collected based on the users’ sweat.

Other technologies have already done similar feats, for example, L’Oreal’s thumbnail device that can track the ultraviolet and measure your exposure to UV radiation. Northwestern’s technology could have a variety of promising applications, for examples, measures athletes health statistics during competitions, or even used as a tool to diagnose patients with kidney disease or cystic fibrosis, or simply used as a tool for people who are living with diabetes to monitor their blood sugar level. All in all, new ways of keeping our health in check are constantly coming.