Nov 26, 2024
Healthy people using CGMs: Potential benefits and risks explained
Siddhartha JanaContinuous glucose monitors (CGMs) provide real-time glucose measurements, which are more detailed than typical finger-prick testing.
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While CGMs are useful for diabetes care, their usage by healthy people might cause undue worry and misinterpretation of data.
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CGMs are accurate, but they may have minor delays when compared to blood glucose levels, particularly after rapid glucose increases.
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The advantages of CGMs include real-time monitoring, decreased hypoglycemia, enhanced glycaemic management, and the convenience of avoiding repeated finger pricks.
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For healthy people, CGMs can help understand how different diets affect blood sugar and may detect prediabetes or undetected diabetes.
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Non-diabetics may experience negative consequences such as misinterpreting glucose spikes, focusing too much on short-term responses, and developing anxiety and disordered eating habits.
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CGMs are expensive, and their usage by healthy people may divert resources away from patients who require them for medical reasons.
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