US medical device maker Abbott is now making general-purpose consumer biosensor wearables.
The company has been making continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) hardware for diabetes management for years (since 2014) – but in a Healthtech keynote at CES yesterday, Abbott’s chairman and CEO, Robert B. Ford, announced the development of a new line of biowearables intended for consumers at – called Lingo – for more general fitness and wellness purposes.
“Technology gives us the power to digitize, decentralize and democratize healthcare, create a common language between you and your doctor – and give you more control over your health,” he said during the keynote. “We are creating a future that offers you and your loved ones more personal and precise care. It’s happening right now. And its potential is nothing short of incredible. “
Ford said the Lingo sensor technology was developed to track “key signals” in the body – such as glucose, ketones and lactate – and added that it could also be used to track alcohol levels in the future.
Last year the company launched a biosensor developed for athletes called Libre Sense Glucose Sport Biowearableiii, available in Europe and used by marathon world record holder Eliud Kipchoge to support their training needs.
Abbott said his goal with lingo is to extend glucose monitoring to people who want to control their weight, sleep better, improve their energy levels, and think more clearly.
To support this expanded utility, the company is developing the biosensor to measure biomarkers other than glucose.
“A ketone biowearable is being developed to continuously track ketones, see how quickly you are ketosis and understand exactly what is keeping you there by providing insights into dieting and weight loss,” the company noted in a press release. “A lactate biowearable is being developed to track the continuous build-up of lactate during exercise, which can be used as an indicator of athletic performance.”
In recent years a number of Startups in the USA, Europe and Asia have tried to produce CGM hardware – including existing Abbott sensors – for a variety of non-medical uses by bringing real-time blood glucose tracking services to the market for the fitness enthusiast, people looking to lose weight, or health-conscious consumers in general.
Abbott’s leap into the field itself so quickly suggests that he sees significant potential for consumer biosensory wearables to make its way into the mainstream.
For an in-depth look at life with a CGM biosensor attached to your arm – and the constantly updated window into the biological process it offers – visit TechCrunch Review of Ultrahuman’s cyborg service, an India-based startup repurposing the current sensor hardware manufactured by Abbott.
