美国国家公共电台 NPR--This Massachusetts startup wants to track your sweat

（单词翻译）

This Massachusetts startup wants to track your sweat

Transcript¹

We've got any number of devices we can strap² to our bodies to track our footsteps, heart rate, and sleep patterns. Next up, possibly — sweat monitoring for precision rehydration and worker safety.

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

An old commercial for deodorant³ says, never let them see you sweat. NPR's Science Desk begs to differ. They've been studying sweat this summer, and Ari Daniel has the latest in sweat-sensing technology.

ARI DANIEL, BYLINE⁴: To learn about all that our individualized sweat has to tell us, I headed over to Epicore Biosystems, a startup based in Cambridge, Mass.

(SOUNDBITE OF FOOTSTEPS ON TREADMILL⁵)

DANIEL: I'm escorted into a small room where AJ Aranyosi, the 50-something chief scientific officer, is booking it on a treadmill. And he's just dripping.

AJ ARANYOSI: I've been the heaviest sweater since we founded the company.

DANIEL: Aranyosi shows me his left forearm, where he's got a hexagonal patch the size of a stout⁶ Band-Aid. His sweat wicks through narrow channels that snake across its face. The company developed the patch in partnership⁷ with Gatorade. It's a one-time use, and a two-pack retails⁸ for 25 bucks⁹. Roozbeh Ghaffari, the CEO, says we tend to underappreciate the value of sweat.

ROOZBEH GHAFFARI: We just take it for granted, wipe it off, throw it into a laundry basket. But turns out there's this treasure chest of information that's just there. And it varies from person to person.

DANIEL: And from day to day, based on weather and workout. The patch changes color according to how much you sweat and how salty it is.

GHAFFARI: We can determine your total fluid loss, and that tells us immediately what we need to put back into your body. How do we rehydrate?

DANIEL: In other words, what optimal¹⁰ mix of fluid and electrolytes do you need in the moment? Aranyosi uses an app on his phone to snap a picture of the patch, which translates its orange and purple colors.

ARANYOSI: Gives me my sweat rate. So I filled almost three-quarters of a big bottle of Coke. And then my sodium¹¹ loss was fairly high, meaning my sweat was pretty salty today.

DANIEL: The team sees benefits for elite¹² athletes to avoid cramping¹³ and heatstroke. But sweat monitoring could be useful for workers in high-heat environments, too. On each of Aranyosi's biceps is another sensor¹⁴ currently under development. It's like the patch, but it's got a little packet of electronics that continuously monitors fluid loss and salt content. If the wearer starts to become dehydrated, the device vibrates - a signal to drink fluids quickly. Aranyosi says the device will help those working in construction, oil fields, farm fields.

ARANYOSI: Being able to tailor recommendations about how to stay hydrated is going to help improve worker safety overall, especially as summers get hotter and hotter.

DANIEL: Looking ahead, the company plans to track stress hormones¹⁵ and other components¹⁶ in sweat - a fluid, in their eyes, flowing with all sorts of health data if you're willing to soak it up.

Ari Daniel, NPR News.

(SOUNDBITE OF MNDSGN AND REJOICER'S "PURPLE T SHIRTS")