Colour Changing Clothes Could Help People Manage Diseases Like Diabetes

In recent years, there's been an increase in light-up dresses on the red carpet. The Met Gala, in all its dramatic glory, has provided the ideal space to showcase such designs, with Katy Perry, Claire Danes and this year, Zendaya, all choosing tech-heavy gowns to fit each year's theme. But it turns out, smart clothes – as they're being called – could actually be used for a purpose far more useful than simply looking impressive on the Met steps.

The Evening Standard reported that the development of smart clothes was discussed at this year's Great Exhibition Road Festival, which outlined plans for colour-changing clothes that could warn the wearer if they become ill. The pieces will change colour and heat up in response to any changes in the electrical conductivity of the wearer's skin, using technology created by scientists at the University of Lancaster. This could be helpful for those managing diseases such as diabetes, for example, as the clothes could sense when glucose levels are too high.

As well as this, there are plans to develop clothes that can charge phones using solar panels and conductive fibres in fabric. Dr Jessica Wade, a research associate at Imperial College London’s Faculty of Natural Sciences said that she hopes potential customers would be attracted by the idea of owning something that will last, as an antidote to fast fashion. "We’ve got tired of passive clothing but because we’ve got good at making it cheaply, we’ve not done anything innovative with it," she said.

“When our clothes are adaptable, it will increase the value we get from them, they will do more for you."

SEE: Zendaya's Light-Up Dress And All The Other Amazing Looks From This Year's Met Gala