By Brian Liszewski
Much like an excess amount of alcohol in the blood can impair one’s ability to drive (among other things) a deficit in glucose or blood sugar can also have a dangerous effect when you get behind the wheel. In fact, the effects of type 1 diabetes can lead to dizziness, seizures and even a loss of consciousness, which makes operating a vehicle even more dangerous.
So to reduce the risk of accidents caused by diabetes, a company called Medtronic has created a dashbboard mounted device that works in conjunction with a glucose monitor to track the driver’s blood sugar levels. The monitor uses a wireless sensor that samples the driver’s blood glucose level every few minutes, and if it drops below an acceptable level, the dashboard unit notifies the driver with an audible warning. Unfortunately at that point it’s up to the driver to do the responsible thing and pull over until they get their glucose level back into the acceptable range, since the device in its current form is not able to disable the vehicle. However, I imagine it could eventually be used much like a built-in breathalyser to prevent the vehicle from starting in the first place if the driver’s blood sugar is at a dangerous level
[ Medtronic Diabetes ] VIA [ bookofjoe ]
