Wearable technology may be in vogue at the moment, and now Google has announced a new project which takes the technology to a whole other level - smart contact lenses.

Its latest venture, which is currently still in development, is anything but frivolous, as the company hopes that this will make it easier for diabetics to monitor their all important glucose levels.

Indeed, for those who suffer from diabetes, failure to do can lead to long term complications, and, if a diabetic faints while driving, for example, life-threatening. The problem to date is that the primary method involves regularly pricking one’s skin to get a blood sugar reading. On its blog, the company pointed out that this is disruptive and painful. And, as a result, many people with diabetes check their blood glucose less often than they should.

Getting smart about diabetes

With this in mind, Google’s latest project entails testing a smart contact lens that’s built to measure glucose levels in tears using a tiny wireless chip (the size of glitter) and miniaturised glucose sensor that are embedded between two layers of soft contact lens material. Google elaborated that it is currently testing prototypes that can generate a reading once per second. Furthermore, the smart lenses are envisioned as offering an early warning by means of integrating LED lights that illuminate when glucose levels reach a certain point.

“It’s still early days for this technology, but we’ve completed multiple clinical research studies which are helping to refine our prototype. We hope this could someday lead to a new way for people with diabetes to manage their disease,” the company added.

If nothing else, the solution could be brilliant. It could conceivably also be the forerunner of a possible future where we not only print 3D organs, but monitor and optimise our health using wearables or perhaps even implants no larger than the head of a pin.