No blood, only tears and sweat
A wearable sensor that can check glucose levels from any body fluid containing salt
Scientists create a copper-based sensor that can gauge glucose levels from any body fluid that contains salt
PAINFUL BLOOD extraction to test sugar levels could soon be a thing of past. Scientists have created a copper-based sensor that can gauge glucose levels from any body fluid that contains salt, for instance sweat and tears. Copper has been exhaustively studied for the purpose because it is highly conductive and inexpensive. But it also has a non-porous structure. This problem was overcome by mixing a liquid solution of copper with polystyrene (a polymer made from the monomer styrene that can be solid or foamed) to create small polystyrene balls with copper attached to the outside. The balls were then attached to a substrate through a process similar to electroplating and ultraviolet light was passed through the balls to make them into a wearable, porous film with holes 10,000 times smaller than the human hair. The film can be combined with smart watches to provide continuous glucose reading of the wearer. Angewandte Chemie, October 4