A world in which type one diabetics no longer need to inject themselves every day may be just a few years away, after British scientists launched an ambitious project to create a system which delivers insulin automatically.

Currently people with type one diabetes must undergo prick tests several times a day to monitor their blood sugar, and inject themselves with insulin when it gets too high.

The daily chore is time-consuming and invasive, and for children if often means they cannot attend parties, sleep-overs and camps where parents cannot monitor their condition.

But now scientists at the University of Birmingham are developing smart capsules which would travel through the body and release insulin when they came across high levels of blood sugar.