Google's smart contact lens will measure glucose levels in your tears

The wearables trend just got ridiculously intense, thanks to Google's new smart contact lens for diabetics.

That's right. Google's Google X team has developed a smart contact lens that can measure your glucose levels. It uses miniaturised electronics like chips, sensors, and a hair-thin antenna to test your tears for glucose.

"We’re now testing a smart contact lens that’s built to measure glucose levels in tears using a tiny wireless chip and miniaturized glucose sensor that are embedded between two layers of soft contact lens material," announced Google on its blog. "We’re testing prototypes that can generate a reading once per second."

Google revealed it also working toward embedding tiny LED lights, among other things, which would light up to notify you of low or high glucose. The possibilities are endless, really,. Google said it is even looking for partners who are "experts" in bringing a product like a smart lens contact to market.

"These partners will use our technology for a smart contact lens and develop apps that would make the measurements available to the wearer and their doctor," added Google.

As for whether this contact lens prototype is safe health-wise, Google confirmed that it has already completed multiple clinical research studies. The company also said it is in "discussions with the FDA," though it still has a long way to go before this product can go mainstream.

While Google's wearable prototype is cool, keep in mind that a smart contact lens is not new. We're not talking about a half-baked idea from a Sci-Fi novel; Microsoft and the University of Washington actually worked on a similar project in 2011.
Source: Google 1
Source: Google 2
Source: Microsoft