Diabetic Foot Care: how technology is helping diabetics with the latest invention. Smart socks track diabetic health so you worry less.
You already know about the many ways that diabetes can affect your health, and how important it is to take extra care of your feet with this disease. However, something than can make your life less stressful is the launch of these smart socks track diabetic health for you. Yes, you read that right. Smart socks for diabetics is a new thing, and thanks to technology, living with diabetes may just make the tracking and keeping records easier and faster.
Diabetic foot health is especially important because even the smallest of damage to the skin of your feet can lead to severe infections, ulcers and even amputation.
This is in part because of the changes in pressure and blood circulation within your body due to the disease; but also because of the unwanted trauma that comes from high stress levels, ill-fitting footwear, standing or putting pressure on your feet for long periods of time, etc.
Without knowing you may be putting your diabetic foot health at risk. Then, in come the smart socks for diabetics.
In essence, these smart socks track diabetic health so you don’t have to. Scientists and Engineers from several Universities and Tech companies have been working on these socks for quite sometime now, in order to provide much needed relief to diabetics patients.
One of these smart socks for diabetics has been described as a “full wireless, customizable and washable smart sock”. The creators indicate that these are made of a soft, breathable textile material that contained fibers knitted in a way that they can provide measures of the exact level of pressure that the your feet are receiving.
The information can be tracked in real time through an app on your mobile phone, thus, helping you monitor your diabetic foot health without the hassle of removing your shoes and socks several times a day.
Sounds fascinating, right ? In addition to the pressure, these smart socks track diabetic health by also measuring the internal strain that the soft tissue of your feet receive, checking the stress levels, peaks of pressure and in even the risk of an ulcer.
By configuration the socks’ alert systems, you as a patient, and your Physician, can both get alerts on the changes in your feet pressure and the risk of an injury.
Another one of the companies involved in the development of these smart socks for diabetics, already has their models on pre-sale.
Their smart socks track diabetic health through temperature sensors, taking into consideration all the changes that could point to possible inflammation, ulcers, sores and other related injuries that could develop into infections.
Groundbreaking as this is, it is also practical and easy to use. The socks are equipped with a battery that is meant to last for a period of up to 6 months on a single charge, and – smart as they are – they go into “sleep mode” when you take them off.
These models are also machine washable and are strong enough to withstand the normal wear and tear of regular socks for a period of 6 months.
Both models are also incredibly easy to use, as they come with their corresponding smartphone app, which lets you check the monitoring process, track any changes during the day, and get an immediate real-time alert whenever there is an issue.
Taking into consideration that, something so simple as having your shoes tied up too tight can cause a change in pressure and lead to inflammation, it is pretty neat being able to know this before it causes irreversible damage.
These companies are aiming to launch their full product line during the Spring of next year, which brings a whole new wave of hope for those living with diabetics.
Sources:
https://techcrunch.com/2016/11/25/siren-care-makes-a-smart-sock-to-track-diabetic-health/
