Empowering People with Diabetes and Continuous Glucose Monitoring

BY Matthew Wateski-Hansen

Glucose levels in a person with diabetes are affected by so many different factors including medications, food, activity, sleep or stress. It is nearly impossible to check how glucose levels may rise or fall all day and night long with a fingerstick – so the traditional way of monitoring glucose levels relied on having people check at specific times during the day and during times when low glucose levels were suspected. This allowed for some information to help guide decisions on how to best manage diabetes, however we were left with an incomplete picture.

Continuous Glucose Monitors (CGM) and the Information CGMs Give

As technology and our understanding of all the ways glucose levels are affected improves, people with diabetes can empower themselves with knowledge and skills to help bring glucose levels to goal and perhaps even attain diabetes remission in some cases. Continuous glucose monitors (CGMs) are devices that read a person’s glucose levels throughout the day. A sensor is applied just below the skin, and it captures a person’s glucose levels – this information is then sent wirelessly to either a smart phone or a reader device that has been paired. What the person wearing the CGM sees is their glucose levels and whether the glucose levels are rising or falling.

Additionally, the data gathered from the CGM is put into a report so the individual and healthcare team can see patterns. The report generated with the information is called an ambulatory glucose profile report (AGP), summarizes 10-14 days of glucose readings. Some conversations one can have with their health care provider include when are glucose levels are too high, too low, or in range, and what factors may be causing the glucose levels to change. For example, a person may notice a decrease in glucose after intense exercise, opening the possibility about potential dose adjustments of their medications or appropriate timing of meals.

Lifestyle Medicine, CGM, and Empowering People with Diabetes

There are six pillars of lifestyle medicine: healthy eating, a whole-food, plant-predominant eating pattern, physical activity, restorative sleep, stress management, avoidance of risky substances and positive social connections. Each of these pillars contribute to treat diabetes and has the potential to bring the diabetes into remission or even reverse insulin resistance. Each of these pillars also directly affect glucose levels – and people wearing CGM can see how sleep or stress and foods or physical activity directly impact their glucose levels. With this information in the hands of both the person with diabetes and the provider, meaningful conversations can be had around the relationship between glucose levels and various aspects a person’s life and identifying key times during the day where one could improve fluctuating glucose levels. CGM is a powerful technology that allows real-time glucose readings to be used to help determine how to best manage diabetes, optimize health outcomes, minimize complications because of low or high glucose levels, and empower the person and healthcare team to make the best individualized decisions.

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Article details

Empowering People with Diabetes: Role of Continuous Glucose Monitor Systems
Matthew Wateski-Hansen & Sneha B Srivastava
First Published: March 15, 2023
DOI: 10.1177/15598276231158044
American Journal of Lifestyle Medicine

About the authors

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Matthew Wateski-Hansen is a fourth year pharmacy student at Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science. He is passionate about patient care and health outcomes by optimizing medication management, as well as cost conscientiousness for both patients and healthcare systems. His focus lies in inpatient, clinical pharmacy practice, and has an upcoming Post-Graduate residency at Aspirus Wausau Hospital. He is excited for the opportunity to continue his journey as a lifelong learner within the field of medicine, and hopes to pursue an Oncology speciality during his pharmacy practice career.

Sneha Baxi Srivastava, PharmD, BCACP, CDCES, DipACLM, FADCES is passionate about empowering people with knowledge and skills to prevent and treat chronic conditions, especially diabetes, and about lifelong learning. She is an Associate Professor and Associate Director of Skills Education at Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science College of Pharmacy and a Clinical Pharmacist at Lake County Health Department. Dr. Srivastava earned her Doctor of Pharmacy degree at Rutgers University Ernest Mario School of Pharmacy and completed 2 years of postgraduate training in pharmacy practice and primary care at the University of Illinois College of Pharmacy. Dr Srivastava is board certified in ambulatory care and lifestyle medicine and is a certified diabetes care and education specialist.