Posted: July 1, 2015 Contributor: PRJKT RUBY
How a Color Changing Condom Could Protect Your Health
Last week, news outlets everywhere published the amazing news that three British teens developed a condom that would change color when exposed to certain sexually transmitted diseases. It comes as no surprise that this could be another great step in the battle to cut down on the spread of STDs worldwide. Unfortunately, there is still much research and work to be done to get these game-changing condoms out in circulation but we have to admit, these teens really thought outside of the box!
Here are the facts about the color changing condoms:
Official name – S.T.EYE
Creators: 13-year-old Muaz Nawaz and 14-year-olds Daanyaal Alu and Chirag Shah of the Newton Academy in east London.
Concept: In order to combat the growing issue of STDs, these teens developed a condom that would recognize the virus or bacteria associated with several sexually transmitted diseases and infections. Antibodies would be able to detect the presence of the infection and turn the condom a specific color as a type of warning signal. The exact shade of the condom would be slightly different depending on the reaction time.
There would also be an intermediate layer which would detect syphilis, chlamydia, herpes and genital warts. Aside from encouraging teens to be aware of potential STD exposure, you get the added benefit that this product could potentially prompt them to wear a condom in the first place, a challenge many health departments face when it comes to teen sex.
What next?
While still an early concept, the teens have been reportedly approached by a condom manufacturer that believes they could turn the concept in to a working product.