China is projected to generate the most yearly greenhouse gas emissions from wearable healthcare electronics in 2050, followed by India. The analysis is published in the journal Nature
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The consumption of wearable healthcare technology, including blood pressure monitors and ultrasound patches, can increase 42-fold worldwide by 2050, approaching two billion units yearly and emitting 3.4 metric tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent, according to an analysis.
China is projected to generate the most yearly greenhouse gas emissions from wearable healthcare electronics in 2050, followed by India. The analysis is published in the journal Nature.
The environmental footprint is estimated alongside ecotoxicity and e-waste issues posed by the devices. A kilogram of carbon dioxide equivalent is a unit measuring the climate impact of greenhouse gases emitted by comparing their potential for warming to that of carbon dioxide.
Researchers from the US' Cornell and Chicago universities estimated that a wearable healthcare device could be emitting up to six kilograms of carbon dioxide equivalent during its entire lifetime, from raw material extraction through manufacturing to disposal.
The researchers also showed that the use of recyclable or biodegradable plastics offers only marginal benefits, whereas substituting critical-metal conductors and optimising circuit architectures can significantly reduce impacts without compromising performance.
The team's engineering-based framework of assessing a device's footprint during its lifecycle "holds promise for establishing (an) ecologically responsible innovation in next-generation wearable electronics."
The researchers conducted a 'life cycle assessment' of four devices they said represented wearable electronics in digital healthcare -- a non-invasive continuous glucose monitor, a continuous electrocardiogram (ECG) monitor, a blood pressure monitor (BPM) and a point-of-care ultrasound patch.
The devices were selected for the analysis based on clinical relevance, diversity of sensing modalities and coverage across the technology readiness spectrum.
"(A) cradle-to-grave analysis of representative wearable healthcare electronics (glucose, cardiac and blood pressure monitors and diagnostic imagers) generates full-spectrum environmental impact metrics, identifying warming impacts of 1.1-6.1 (kilograms carbon dioxide)-equivalent per device," the authors wrote.
"The global device consumption is projected to increase 42-fold by 2050, approaching two billion units annually and generating 3.4 (metric tonnes of carbon dioxide) - equivalent emissions alongside ecotoxicity and e-waste issues," they said.
By 2050, non-invasive continuous glucose monitors could surpass current global smartphone sales, estimated at 1.2 billion units in 2024, the team said.
They added that the market share is initially dominated by continuous ECG and blood pressure monitors, but by 2050, continuous glucose monitors dominate (72 per cent), followed by continuous ECG (19 per cent) and blood pressure monitors (eight per cent).
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