Katharina Buczek
Keeping track of how much you drink during a night out may sound easy enough. But, it can be challenging to discern exactly how much alcohol is in each drink coupled with your body’s personalized reaction to alcohol.
Plus, an intoxicated guess is rarely the most accurate.
Instead, researchers at Penn State’s Department of Biobehavioral Health have studied how wearable sensors may be the answer.
By using ankle bracelets, the team was able to measure blood alcohol concentration. And, the sensors’ technology only needed to sense a tiny amount of sweat to work.
Transdermal alcohol-concentration sensors can measure alcohol concentration through a person’s skin.
While some might compare this technology to a breathalyzer, these sensors actually report much more data.
By wearing a sensor, your peak intoxication level will be recorded, as well as the rate at which you become intoxicated. Finally, you can also see how much alcohol was in your system and for exactly how long.
And the best part about these sensors is that they operate passively. Breathalyzers and other methods require cooperation, which can be difficult when an individual is intoxicated.
This method can also be inconvenient or invasive. Instead, the sensors require no cooperation or work from the individual. All you have to do is simply wear the bracelet.
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