Taiwanese scientists have developed a new sensor that sits in your mouth and could tell doctors if you are overeating or smoking too much. Researchers at the National Taiwan University in Taipei have created a prototype sensor that connects to a mouth brace and includes an accelerometer that measures the motion of your mastication and other oral movements.
Right now, the prototype board is wired, allowing it to be charged and protecting testers from accidentally swallowing the sensor unit. Even in its current form, the prototype has an accuracy of nearly 94 percent and its learning algorithms can differentiate between eating, speaking, coughing, smoking, drinking, and breathing. If you've been overly gluttonous or you've started indulging in a nasty habit, this sensor is capable of calling you out on it. Moving forward, the team intends to design a new Bluetooth-enabled prototype that will be small enough to fit inside a tooth cavity and feature inductive battery recharging. If it becomes a reality, we could soon see dentists start offering a FitBit for our teeth.