Bracelet can tell if a woman is pregnant
Traditional home pregnancy tests could soon be a thing of the past, with scientists announcing a new smartwatch system that alerts women when they have conceived.
Swiss researchers, presenting research in Texas at the annual congress of the American Society for Reproductive Medicine, said that conception leads to minor changes in skin temperature, breathing rate, pulse and heart rate. These subtle physiological changes can be detected by existing technology, the researchers said, explaining that they plan to begin real-world tests with their ‘Ava’ bracelet before the end of this year.
The team are currently working on algorithms to enable the bracelet to recognise the characteristics of individual wearers’ signals, indicating not merely the start of pregnancy but also the best windows in which to try for a child and the presence of early indicators for such serious conditions as pre-eclampsia.
The Ava bracelet is expected to cost around €225.
GET IT CHECKED
November is Prostate Cancer Awareness Month, and cancer.ie is a resource well worth checking to boost awareness of the most common cancer for men in Ireland: each year, 3,400 Irish men are diagnosed with the disease, with one in seven Irish men being diagnosed with prostate cancer over their lifetime.
Most men diagnosed with prostate cancer are aged over 50, and doctors believe that men of that age should discuss with their GP whether they should undergo prostate screening. Men over 40 with a family history of prostate cancer should similarly consult with their GPs. Common symptoms of prostate cancer include slow urine flow, difficulties in stopping or starting urine flow, pain when passing urine, blood in urine, and a feeling of not having fully emptied one’s bladder.
Repayments on tap
Families who have paid water charges and are due their money back will be able to do so through a refunds page Irish Water has put on its website.
The company has said that refunds worth €173 million will be paid to 990,000 customers across Ireland.
While legislation to enable refunds is passing through the Oireachtas, customers will be able to long onto water.ie/refunds to check how much they are due and when they are likely to receive their refunds.
Customers who have changed their addresses should contact the company on 1850 448 448 to update their details, while those who have not changed their address will be refunded by cheques sent to the account holder at the address held by Irish Water.