We live in the era in which space probes land on Mars and artificial intelligence begins to read our minds... And there is still no precise way to understand how much water we have in our bodies and how much we should drink during physical exercise? Hydration is key, but we often rely only on thirst to figure out how much to drink. That's why I found this interesting Nix Hydration Biosensor, an amazing device for athletes (but I see it useful for the elderly too).
Because thirst is not enough
You got it right. Thirst is not a reliable indicator of hydration: when we feel thirsty, our body is already dehydrated, often for a long time. Not only that: you can quench your thirst without being completely rehydrated.
Dehydration can cause problems with the cardiovascular system, decreased performance, and problems regulating body temperature.
Especially during physical exertion
Measuring fluid loss during physical activity is not easy. In the laboratory, the naked body is weighed before and after exercise, but this certainly does not help a runner during a marathon. Cyclists can use a GPS with a built-in alarm, gym goers can wear a smartwatch with hydration notifications. Gatorade also launched a disposable biosensor, GX Sweat Patch, which measures sweat rate, fluid loss, and sodium.
Advanced forms of palliative, not entirely reliable and sometimes expensive.
Real-time hydration
In December, the startup nix, founded by the marathon runner and Harvard graduate Meridith Cass, introduced the Nix Hydration Biosensor, the first wearable sensor capable of providing real-time “sweat science.”
How does it work? Nix attaches to the bicep via a protective film and locally measures the body's perspiration profile, extrapolating the data for the whole body through an algorithmic calculation. As sweat flows over its electrodes, the device analyzes its contents at two different points along the way.
By comparing data from these two positions, the sensor can understand how fast the liquid is moving in the body. Connected via Bluetooth to the Nix app, the biosensor sends hydration notifications to your phone at user-customizable intervals.
Application fields
With such a smart and easy-to-use device, athletes can focus on exercise without worrying about drinking too little or too much. It's like having a real-time "dashboard" on your body's hydration conditions.
The “great” convergence of these devices (which passes through the miniaturization of biosensors) will be important. One day not far away, with a single device it will allow us to view on the display of a bracelet (or our glasses) the parameters necessary to stay fit and healthy.
Something that as a child I only saw in science fiction films.
