Disposable wristbands, much like the paper bracelets worn at concerts, can protect wearers from sunburn and skin-cancer risk by alerting them when to head into the shade.
The new device lets people know when they’re nearing their limit of ultraviolet (UV) radiation exposure by changing color from yellow to pink as the risk of overexposure increases. They’re cheap (potentially just 15 cents per bracelet), easy to wear and can be thrown out at the end of the day.
The technology was created by Professor Andrew Mills and Dr. Michael McFarlane, both formerly in the department of pure and applied chemistry at the University of Strathclyde in Glasgow, Scotland. The researchers are now consultants to Intellego Technologies, the Swedish company that will develop and sell the new devices in the spring of 2013, according to the U.K.’s Daily Mail.
The wristbands contain an acid-release agent and a dye that work in concert to pick up UV light and then change color depending on the levels of radiation detected. Different bands will be tailored for people of varying skin types, who have different levels of UV tolerance. The band made for fair-skinned and fair-haired types will change color faster than bands made for darker-complected people.
In the U.S., skin cancer is the most common form of cancer, with more than 3.5 million cases diagnosed each year. Sunburn or overexposure to the sun is a major risk factor for
You can read the rest of this article on Time: A Wristband that Tells You When To Get Out of the Sun.
