Continuous Glucose Monitoring (CGM)
Discussion
Based on web activity, this seems to be gearing up as one of the Next Big Things in health and fitness, which up until this point has been largely for those managing diabetes. Does anyone have any experience of it, for clinical purposes or otherwise?
CGM is basically having a sensor on your skin somewhere that can constantly monitor your blood sugar, so you can see how it reacts to sleep, fasting, different foods, activity etc. I was curious about it because I have a sweet tooth, probably eat a lot of carbs, experienced what I thought were sugar hangovers after binging etc, and I cycle a lot so was keen to see how blood sugar affected/was affected by exercise, and the effectiveness of the energy drinks/food I'd been trying, as getting enough of the right kind of fuel had always been a problem on extended rides.
What I found was that my internal regulation system must be pretty good - one of the tests for diabetes is that you drink 75g of glucose, and two hours later your blood glucose level has dropped back below around 8 mmol/l. I found I couldn't really ever get my blood sugar ABOVE this, despite eating four chocolate shortbreads and a Lucozade Sport, around 200g of carbs and almost half of it sugar. So I don't seem to be a diabetic risk, which is good, because people regularly warn me about that (I eat a lot).
It also told me things that I already knew but probably don't really follow, like a slice of brioche on its own will spike my blood sugar more than the same slice with peanut butter on it. But how much does it matter?
I've not really found any references showing that blood sugar spikes as part of your normal day to day living are a health risk in the future, but I'm sure they're out there. A fair few people on Youtube are using CGM to try to flatline their blood sugar as much as possible, avoiding carby breakfasts in favour of eggs and greens, and always having protein/fat with small servings of carbs, no big plates of pasta or rice. Kind of common sense, but sometimes it helps to see evidence in the form of numbers of graphs for you to actually follow it.
BUT - I'm not really seeing anything that is immediately actionable, because the ups and downs aren't particularly marked, and there are probably a few dozen things that affect blood sugar, not just what you take in and how active you are. It's starting to be marketed as 'track your energy levels' for endurance athletes and I really can't see how that would work in practice, particularly as there is never any mention of glycogen which is one of the limiting factors in endurance activity, and isn't easily replaced once it's been used during a race.
There might be some marginal benefit for pro athletes, but for amateur/leisure athletes it's about £90 a month for the sensors. Eep.
CGM is basically having a sensor on your skin somewhere that can constantly monitor your blood sugar, so you can see how it reacts to sleep, fasting, different foods, activity etc. I was curious about it because I have a sweet tooth, probably eat a lot of carbs, experienced what I thought were sugar hangovers after binging etc, and I cycle a lot so was keen to see how blood sugar affected/was affected by exercise, and the effectiveness of the energy drinks/food I'd been trying, as getting enough of the right kind of fuel had always been a problem on extended rides.
What I found was that my internal regulation system must be pretty good - one of the tests for diabetes is that you drink 75g of glucose, and two hours later your blood glucose level has dropped back below around 8 mmol/l. I found I couldn't really ever get my blood sugar ABOVE this, despite eating four chocolate shortbreads and a Lucozade Sport, around 200g of carbs and almost half of it sugar. So I don't seem to be a diabetic risk, which is good, because people regularly warn me about that (I eat a lot).
It also told me things that I already knew but probably don't really follow, like a slice of brioche on its own will spike my blood sugar more than the same slice with peanut butter on it. But how much does it matter?
I've not really found any references showing that blood sugar spikes as part of your normal day to day living are a health risk in the future, but I'm sure they're out there. A fair few people on Youtube are using CGM to try to flatline their blood sugar as much as possible, avoiding carby breakfasts in favour of eggs and greens, and always having protein/fat with small servings of carbs, no big plates of pasta or rice. Kind of common sense, but sometimes it helps to see evidence in the form of numbers of graphs for you to actually follow it.
BUT - I'm not really seeing anything that is immediately actionable, because the ups and downs aren't particularly marked, and there are probably a few dozen things that affect blood sugar, not just what you take in and how active you are. It's starting to be marketed as 'track your energy levels' for endurance athletes and I really can't see how that would work in practice, particularly as there is never any mention of glycogen which is one of the limiting factors in endurance activity, and isn't easily replaced once it's been used during a race.
There might be some marginal benefit for pro athletes, but for amateur/leisure athletes it's about £90 a month for the sensors. Eep.
I use libre freestyle along with an omnipod to control T1 diabetes.
Very useful too, a game changer. I'm not sure I see the value otherwise, just because you can do something should you? £100pcm for a healthy person to be told they're body is acting normally, maybe I'm missing the point. Although I appreciate that mass market R&D and distribution scale will benefit diabetic care.
The waste irritates me, little pods of electronics/batteries/cannula etc going in the bin every few days. At least Omnipod have a recycling program, I don't know how successful it is at recovering stuff.
PS if you want to see sugar spikes try grapes.
Very useful too, a game changer. I'm not sure I see the value otherwise, just because you can do something should you? £100pcm for a healthy person to be told they're body is acting normally, maybe I'm missing the point. Although I appreciate that mass market R&D and distribution scale will benefit diabetic care.
The waste irritates me, little pods of electronics/batteries/cannula etc going in the bin every few days. At least Omnipod have a recycling program, I don't know how successful it is at recovering stuff.
PS if you want to see sugar spikes try grapes.
Edited by Clifford Chambers on Wednesday 7th April 16:39
I am a T1 diabetic too.
I frequent a Facebook page about the Freestyle Libre (CGM). I also use the Freestyle Libre.
It is true that 'normal' non diabetic people do see spikes in blood sugar levels after eating. Many only seem to go up to about 8.0 after meals though (some evidence posted on the Facebook page). However the higher the spike the more strain the pancreas is under to produce insulin. Overtime, this strain can start to cause Type 2 diabetes as the pancreas cannot keep producing insulin at the level the body needs. T2 diabetes is prevalent in overweight people (too many carbs) and certain Asian communities where the richer western diet strains the pancreas over the years.
My dad was diagnosed as a T2 diabetic a few years back. He is not overweight and cycles everywhere, but used to love my mum's desserts! Cutting his sweet tooth out meant he has managed to reverse the diabetes.
The type of carb taken makes a big difference too. Wholemeal pasta/ bread is slower at releasing the carb than an energy drink or even their white equivalents. Hence marathon runners eating wholemeal pasta the night beforehand, for example. T1 diabetics will have glucose if their blood sugar goes low, as it acts far quicker. So, it is not purely the amount of carb but the type too.
I frequent a Facebook page about the Freestyle Libre (CGM). I also use the Freestyle Libre.
It is true that 'normal' non diabetic people do see spikes in blood sugar levels after eating. Many only seem to go up to about 8.0 after meals though (some evidence posted on the Facebook page). However the higher the spike the more strain the pancreas is under to produce insulin. Overtime, this strain can start to cause Type 2 diabetes as the pancreas cannot keep producing insulin at the level the body needs. T2 diabetes is prevalent in overweight people (too many carbs) and certain Asian communities where the richer western diet strains the pancreas over the years.
My dad was diagnosed as a T2 diabetic a few years back. He is not overweight and cycles everywhere, but used to love my mum's desserts! Cutting his sweet tooth out meant he has managed to reverse the diabetes.
The type of carb taken makes a big difference too. Wholemeal pasta/ bread is slower at releasing the carb than an energy drink or even their white equivalents. Hence marathon runners eating wholemeal pasta the night beforehand, for example. T1 diabetics will have glucose if their blood sugar goes low, as it acts far quicker. So, it is not purely the amount of carb but the type too.
Edited by mike9009 on Wednesday 7th April 23:45
Gassing Station | Health Matters | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff