Sweat monitor could help management and diagnosis of diabetes

The researchers, from the University of Texas at Dallas, are working on devices that will help to manage and regulate type II diabetes, a growing problem not only in the US and UK but increasingly in India. Their wearable biosensor can take measurements every hour for up to a week, giving users and clinicians valuable feedback on whether measures they are taking to manage their condition are effective.

Diabetes monitoring through measuring glucose levels in small blood samples is well-established, but is painful and awkward, and for many Type II diabetics who do not use insulin it is not always useful because they do not have a ready method for rapidly reducing blood sugar. The Dallas team has developed a sensor that measures not only glucose in sweat, but two additional biomarkers: cortisol and interleukin-6.

"If a person has chronic stress, their cortisol levels increase, and their resulting insulin resistance will gradually drive their glucose levels out of the normal range," said Shalini Prasad, a professor of bioengineering who led the research. "At that point, one could become pre-diabetic, which can progress to type 2 diabetes, and so on. If that happens, your body is under a state of inflammation, and this inflammatory marker, interleukin-6, will indicate that your organs are starting to be affected."