Are Glucose Monitors For Non-Diabetics Effective?
Continuous Glucose Monitors and Non-Diabetics: A Closer Look
Blood sugar management for individuals with diabetes is a life-sustaining act. While Continuous Glucose Monitors (CGMs) are a boon to them, it’s fascinating to see these devices also sparking interest among non-diabetics, specifically among the athletic community. A recent study casts some light on this phenomenon. Let’s explore.
Why the Surge in Interest Among Non-Diabetics?
There are two primary reasons behind the rising interest in CGMs among those without diabetes:
Studies have linked extreme post-meal blood sugar spikes with multiple health issues.
People often exhibit varied blood sugar responses even to identical meals.
With a CGM, one might think it's possible to map out blood sugar responses to meals and then tailor the diet for optimal health. But does this belief stand strong in the face of rigorous scientific research?
Highlights from the Recent NIH Study on CGM The U.S. National Institutes of Health embarked on a journey to uncover the truth, using a controlled setting.
The participants, all non-diabetic, were closely monitored at the NIH research hospital. The significant findings were:
Blood sugar responses to the same meals (served a week apart) only showed a “weak to moderate” correlation.
Despite consuming identical meals, participants' blood sugar spike patterns were often so varied that it seemed like they had different meals altogether.
These intriguing observations challenge the consistency of blood sugar responses among individuals and emphasize that factors beyond meals might be at play.
For diabetics, a CGM could be the difference between life and death.
What Does This Mean for You?
For Diabetics: Precision in blood sugar tracking remains paramount. CGMs offer real-time feedback, proving essential for diabetics to maintain safe sugar levels.
For Non-diabetics: It's crucial to recognize that while CGMs can provide valuable insights, they have their limitations. The device can shed light on glucose issues or help understand the body's reaction to certain foods. Especially for endurance athletes that need to optimise their carbohydrate intake, CGMs can be beneficial. But, it’s vital to remember to use CGMs as data collectors and not definitive diagnostic devices.
A CGM may be beneficial to endurance athletes that need to keep their glucose levels in check.
Takeaways
In Summary CGMs are groundbreaking in the realm of diabetes care. However, as they enter the broader health and wellness sphere, understanding their capabilities and constraints is vital. With an informed approach, these monitors can certainly assist individuals in making better dietary and health choices.
Resources
Zeevi D, Korem T, Zmora N, Israeli D, Rothschild D, Weinberger A, et al. Personalized Nutrition by Prediction of Glycemic Responses. Cell. 2015 Nov 19;163(5):1079–94.
Hengist A, Guo J, Hall KD. Imprecision nutrition? Duplicate meals result in unreliable individual glycemic responses measured by continuous glucose monitors across three dietary patterns in adults without diabetes. bioRxiv. 2023.
Howard R, Guo J, Hall KD. Imprecision nutrition? Different simultaneous continuous glucose monitors provide discordant meal rankings for incremental postprandial glucose in subjects without diabetes. Am J Clin Nutr. 2020 Oct 1;112(4):1114–9.
Olansky L, Kennedy L. Finger-stick glucose monitoring: issues of accuracy and specificity. Diabetes Care. 2010 Apr;33(4):948–9.
