Rewritten Article
Revamping Glucose Monitoring: A Deep Dive into Dexcom's Stelo and Abbott's Lingo
Exploring the World of Continuous Glucose Monitors: Benefits Beyond Diabetes Management
Continuous glucose monitors (CGMs) have traditionally been a tool for managing diabetes, but recent developments have opened up new possibilities for individuals seeking to optimize their health and wellness. These devices offer real-time insights into blood sugar levels, allowing individuals to make informed decisions about their diet, exercise, and lifestyle.
In March 2024, Dexcom's Stelo became the first over-the-counter CGM approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), giving more people access to this technology. The device, along with Abbott's Lingo (cleared by the FDA in June 2024), can cost between $83 to $99 per month, depending on the quantity purchased. These devices are now joining regulated versions available by prescription, primarily for diabetes patients and often covered by insurance.
Here are five aspects to consider when utilizing CGMs for general health improvement in those without diabetes diagnoses.
1. Real-Time Insights into Energy Metabolism and Health
Using a CGM involves adhering a disposable sensor to the body, typically the back of the arm or belly. Once placed, a small needle enters just below the skin, leaving a tiny tube in place to monitor blood sugar levels. This process might cause brief discomfort, but the device stays in place for approximately two weeks before needing replacement.
By measuring glucose levels throughout the day and night, the CGM reveals how the body metabolizes energy, offering clues to metabolic health. Users can analyze glucose peaks and valleys in relation to food, exercise, stress, and sleep, and recognize how specific glucose levels affect energy, mood, and focus. Even a short period of tracking (two weeks to a month) is often sufficient to uncover patterns connecting blood sugar fluctuations, metabolism, and overall well-being.
The device also assesses fasting glucose, or the level after an 8-hour fast, by investigating morning glucose levels, which should range between 70-100 mg/dL. Elevated fasting glucose levels could indicate pre-diabetes (101-125 mg/dL) or diabetes (over 125 mg/dL) and should be discussed with a healthcare professional.
2. Fine-Tune Diet with Real-Time Blood Glucose Data
Tracking blood sugar changes in response to food can help identify those that cause or prevent significant spikes. For instance, consuming a sesame bagel alone may lead to a massive spike, but pairing it with protein and vegetables (such as turkey, lettuce, and tomato) may result in slower absorption and a smaller spike. Additionally, eating specific foods in a particular order can lead to lower spikes, such as consuming the lettuce and tomato before the bagel.
Every individual responds differently to food, and two people might have fundamentally different blood sugar reactions to the same bowl of oatmeal. Understanding unique glucose patterns can help develop a diet focusing on foods that avoid large spikes, promoting sustained energy and overall well-being.
Services like Nutrisense and Levels help users analyze and interpret CGM data, providing tailored guidance. Nutrisense offers meal logging and consultation from nutritionists, while Levels assigns a "metabolic score" to meals and activities based on their impact on blood sugar.
3. Optimize Exercise with CGMs
During exercise, blood sugar can vary depending on intensity, duration, and activity type. Aerobic activities like jogging use glucose steadily, while anaerobic exercises like weight lifting or high-intensity activities like sprinting can cause temporary spikes. By using a CGM during workouts, athletes can monitor blood sugar changes in real time, enabling adjustments to pre-exercise meals, hydration, and nutrition to maintain energy levels throughout exercise. Post-exercise glucose data may also inform food choices to support recovery and replenish muscle glucose stores (glycogen).
CGMs can also aid in assessing metabolic flexibility – the body's ability to switch between burning carbohydrates or fat for fuel. Companies like Supersapiens target athletes by offering insights into how glucose levels respond to workouts, meals, and recovery.
Despite the theoretical benefits of utilizing CGMs for optimizing exercise, there is currently a lack of peer-reviewed studies showing that the devices actually improve performance in measurable ways.
4. The Impact of Stress and Sleep on Blood Sugar Levels
Stress and sleep play critical roles in regulating blood sugar, occasionally resulting in dramatic effects. Stress stimulates the release of hormones like cortisol and adrenaline, signaling the liver to release stored glucose for energy. Chronic stress can contribute to insulin resistance and metabolic dysfunction. Similarly, poor sleep affects glucose regulation by impairing insulin sensitivity and altering hunger hormones, leading to overeating and irregular glucose patterns.
Wearing a CGM enables users to observe how stressful events and sleep quality influence their blood sugar patterns and their eating habits, helping to identify trends and triggers. Users can also monitor interventions that improve stress and sleep, such as improved sleep hygiene, meditation, yoga, or biofeedback, alongside improved nutrition to support better glucose control and overall health.
5. Embrace CGMs as Data Tools, Not Magic Bullets
While CGMs offer valuable data, it is important to approach the information with an open, experimental mindset rather than allowing it to create anxiety or rigid rules. A 2024 review of randomized trials studying the devices in both diabetics and non-diabetics found that CGM-based feedback reduced hemoglobin A1C – a marker of glucose control over the previous 2-3 months – by 0.3% and time in range by 7%. However, more research is needed to demonstrate the device's benefits in non-diabetics. Doctors have expressed concerns that continuous glucose monitoring might contribute to disordered eating if individuals concentrate too much on glucose or dramatically change diets.
In conclusion, while CGMs provide valuable data, their impact depends on how and whether that information is utilized. Companies like Dexcom, Abbott, and others are revolutionizing health and wellness by offering real-time, actionable data directly to end users. By approaching this data with curiosity, experimentation, and the guidance of a healthcare professional or nutrition expert, individuals can optimize their health and wellness.
- For individuals without a diabetes diagnosis, utilizing a continuous glucose monitor (CGM) like Dexcom's Stelo or Abbott's Lingo can provide real-time insights into their blood glucose levels, which can help optimize their diet and exercise routine for overall wellness.
- With the approval of over-the-counter CGMs by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), such as Dexcom's Stelo and Abbott's Lingo, more people can affordably monitor their blood glucose levels, with monthly costs ranging between $83 to $99.
- Dexcom's Stelo CGM can reveal how an individual's body metabolizes energy, offering clues to their metabolic health. Users can analyze glucose peaks and valleys in relation to diet, exercise, stress, and sleep, and recognize how specific glucose levels impact energy, mood, and focus.
- By tracking blood sugar changes in response to food with a CGM, individuals can identify those that cause or prevent significant spikes, helping to develop a diet that promotes sustained energy and overall well-being.
- Wearing a CGM can also help individuals monitor how stress and sleep quality influence their blood sugar patterns and eating habits, allowing them to identify trends and triggers for improvement.
