From Single-Ion to Integrated Multi-Ion Platforms: Wearable Sweat Sensors for Electrolyte Monitoring

Sweat contains abundant ions, offering a rich source of physiological information for non-invasive health monitoring. Wearable sweat sensors have become a promising technology due to advances in electrochemical devices, sensing materials and structural design. The current monitoring platforms primarily employ two fundamental sensing modalities to convert sweat chemical information into detectable numerical signals: electrochemical (potentiometric, voltammetric, transistor-based) and optical (colorimetric) transduction mechanisms. The demand for more comprehensive physiological and biochemical data in clinical diagnosis and daily health monitoring is driving sensors towards multi-ion detection. Building on these modalities, researchers have optimized hardware and software algorithms based on the characteristics of different ions, thereby promoting the transition of wearable devices from the laboratory to practical applications. Here, we summarize recent progress in wearable sweat ion sensors, focusing on their mechanisms, advantages, and limitations. Finally, current challenges and future prospects of wearable sweat ion sensors for research applications, clinical use, and market demands are discussed.