After doing hundreds of finger sticks to manage gestational diabetes during my first pregnancy, I get why so many doctors say the best glucose monitor is one that monitors glucose continuously. Continuous glucose monitors are quarter-size wearables that give you real-time, personalized insights about how your last meal or workout is actually impacting your body. (So they’re great for data—plus, they cut way down on the need for those annoying finger sticks and pricey test strips.)
“CGMs are a great way to understand your own unique metabolic blueprint,” says Robin Berzin, M.D., a functional medicine physician and founder of Parsley Health. “Everybody responds to different foods metabolically a little differently based on their genetics, lean muscle mass, and body composition, even their microbiome.” A continuous glucose monitor might show, for example, that a meal you think is healthy—say, a breakfast yogurt with berries and low-sugar granola—actually sends your glucose levels on a rollercoaster. “Blood glucose monitoring systems are a really great mirror to understand how you’re metabolizing the food that you’re eating,” Berzin says.
I could have stopped monitoring my blood sugar postpartum—in the vast majority of cases, including mine, gestational diabetes goes away after childbirth—but I started using a CGM hoping the data would show me how to eat for better energy levels. (“It’s a tool that prompts behavioral change,” Berzin says.) I also know that patients who get gestational diabetes are at a higher risk of developing prediabetes and type 2 diabetes down the road, so a CGM helps me periodically check in.
A prescription-grade continuous glucose monitor can be incredibly useful for diabetes management. It won’t eliminate the need for a traditional glucose monitor—you may still need to do the occasional finger stick—but it can offer real-time glucose data that can be shared directly with the healthcare providers managing your diabetes care.
Finger-stick blood-glucose meters vs. continuous glucose monitors
To use a traditional blood-glucose meter, you prick your finger using a lancet and carefully touch a drop of blood to a special test strip that’s inserted into the device. This method gives you an accurate snapshot of your blood-glucose levels measured straight from the source.
CGMs are small, non-invasive, wearable devices often worn on the upper arm. As the name implies, they continuously measure the glucose levels in your interstitial fluid, the fluid between cells. A CGM reading can be slightly less accurate than a finger-stick reading, but it provides an ongoing picture of your metabolic response to food, exercise, sleep, and stress.
The best glucose monitors
Everyone’s experience of managing their metabolic health is different—there’s a lot of room for personal preference in determining the best blood-glucose monitoring system for you.
The best glucose monitors (both CGMs and traditional fingerstick monitors) combine accuracy and ease of use. You’ll probably also want to consider whether a particular model is covered by your insurance, FSA or HSA eligible, and how easily data can be shared with your doctor.
If you’re looking to better understand your metabolic health, an over-the-counter CGM device can be an excellent tool, according to the experts we spoke with.
If you’ve been diagnosed with diabetes (type 1, type 2, or gestational) or prediabetes, ask your healthcare provider to share the most suitable FDA-approved prescription-grade blood-glucose monitor. Prescription-grade monitors are not only more accurate, they also include features like alarms to prevent hypoglycemia and data-sharing features that allow your doctor’s office to tap into your measurements.
Here are our picks for the best continuous glucose monitors based on experts’ recommendations, user-friendliness, and accessibility.
FreeStyle Libre 3 Plus Complete Kit
CityDME
Abbott’s Freestyle Libre 3 Plus is the smallest blood-sugar testing sensor on the market. About the size of two stacked pennies and weighing just over a gram, it punches above its weight, lasting for a full 15 days and sending glucose data to your phone via Bluetooth once every minute. Some CGM devices need to be scanned with your phone in order to transmit the data, but this model sends it automatically.)
Pros: As a prescription option, the Libre is one of the most reliable CGMs available and approved for use to manage diabetes. Plus, the app allows you to share your data directly with your medical team, enabling your doctor to adjust treatment recommendations in real-time.
For these reasons, it’s Berzin’s preferred CGM for patients. “At Parsley, we use them for people who are looking to lose weight or improve insulin sensitivity, and for people who have hormonal issues that are tied to blood sugar, like PCOS,” she says.
Con: The smartphone app is a little clunky on the consumer side, and you may have to use a third-party app to connect it to your smartwatch.
Dexcom G7
Rainbow Medical Supplies
The Dexcom G7 is another healthcare provider–recommended prescription option that’s covered by Medicare. It’s approved for use in all types of diabetes management (type 1, type 2, and gestational diabetes) and seamlessly connects with multiple types of insulin pumps.
Pros: “I like the data that I get [as a healthcare provider],” says Christine Dennis, a certified registered nurse practitioner specializing in maternal-fetal medicine and diabetes in pregnancy.. “It’s an interactive report, so I can kind of slide my cursor over the line and I can see exactly what their blood sugar is moment to moment.”
On the consumer side, the G7 connects directly to your Apple Watch and the app offers predictive analytics that give you a projected A1C and can also alert you to low blood sugar 20 minutes before you’re hypoglycemic.
Con: The G7 sensor has a shorter battery lifespan (10.5 days).
Lingo
Lingo
For people who don’t need a prescription, the Lingo (also made by Abbott) is a great consumer-friendly FDA-approved option that’s built on the Libre sensor technology. “I recommend it for people who want to know about their bodies. You don’t have to wear it all the time, just episodically,” says Anne Peters, M.D., director of the University of Southern California’s Clinical Diabetes Program. A single two-week sensor costs $49.
Pros: A user-friendly app allows you to track patterns in your blood glucose response with an easy-to-understand “Lingo count.” The app also offers coaching.
Cons: It’s chunkier than prescription options and doesn’t allow you to share data with your doc. It’s also only compatible with iOS 11 or later, and there’s currently no Android or smartwatch support.
Stelo Glucose Biosensor & App
Amazon
The Stelo CGM system (made by Dexcom) is another FDA-approved option available outside of insurance coverage. Based on your metabolic health (including if you have prediabetes or type 2 diabetes) the app will give you a target range. After a 30-minute calibration period, you can start tracking.
Pros: A 15-day wear time means fewer sensors. Users also like that the app syncs with Apple Health and supports meal tracking.
Con: No real-time alerts.
The post The Best Glucose Monitor for Your Health Goals appeared first on Glamour.
