Diabetes is a condition wherein the blood glucose levels are high. It develops when your pancreas don’t make enough insulin or any at all, or when your body isn’t responding to insulin properly. Diabetes can be managed, with right medications, food habits, exercising and maintaining an active and healthy lifestyle.
“Living with diabetes requires determination, and a positive attitude. – Jay Morton”
Being a caregiver to a person with diabetes, I know the above quote is 100% true. To manage diabetes well, you need to be determined towards a disciplined lifestyle. From eating, exercising to monitoring glucose, everything is time bound and you need to follow a strict schedule.
The most important part of your daily routine to manage diabetes is monitoring glucose levels and keeping a track of the readings. Trust me, this was a tiresome process until we switched to continuous glucose monitoring.
In a recent FB event that I attended, it was mentioned that the best way to manage diabetes is to monitor diabetes regularly. And the event introduced me to CGM – Continuous Glucose Monitoring devices. CGM devices make monitoring glucose levels every few minutes possible and the best part is there is no finger pricking involved. CGM devices monitor your glucose levels at regular intervals and you can also use it to see the impact of different food items and exercises on your glucose level that help you plan a better food and exercise routine for a healthy living.
With Continuous Glucose Monitoring devices, like Freestyle libre, you can check your glucose levels without any pain or prick, see trends, and accordingly adjust food intake and ensure that your glucose levels are in optimal range throughout the day.
CGM systems track glucose levels through a sensor applied on back of your arm. The sensor measures your interstitial glucose level, which is the glucose found in the fluid between the cell.
A glucose meter only provides your glucose level at a single moment in time whereas a CGM system gives you a greater view of your glucose trends. CGM can provide valuable information at different point of day and before and after any activity, medicine or even food items and help you know what impact your glucose levels and how.
Regular glucose monitoring is the most important thing you can do to manage diabetes. You’ll be able to see what makes your numbers go up or down, such as eating different foods, taking your medicine, or being physically active.
Understanding your Personal Glucose Levels
FreeStyle Libre helps you understand your glucose level trends, shows you where glucose levels have been and where they are heading.
Time In Range
Time in range (TIR) is a measure of time your glucose levels you spend in the target glucose range. FreeStyle Libre automatically calculates the percentage of time you spend in, above and below the target range. Time In Range report helps you to see how food, activities and medications impact your glucose levels. It helps you in increasing your TIR and it will have a direct impact on reducing your HbA1c.
The Freestyle libre TIR graph shows what percentage of time sensor reading is above, within range and below.
Daily patterns
With atleast five days of glucose data. FreeStyle Libre shows the variability of glucose levels overs hours and days in a graphical pattern.
Low glucose events
FreeStyle Libre also take a note of your low glucose events. A low glucose event is when your glucose levels are lower than 70mg/dL for longer than 15 minutes. And it is maintained in a graphical pattern on the device as well.
Benefits of CGM Devices
Convenient: It measures and stores your glucose readings automatically and gives you a clear picture of your glucose levels.
Discreet: The quick one second scan is painless as you don’t need to prick your fingers again and can be read even through your clothing. The FreeStyle Libre Reader can capture data from within1cm to 4cm of the sensor.
User Friendly: It stores your glucose level readings and shows how it changes in last 8 hours. You can keep a check on your glucose data and trends. To get a 24-hour glycemic picture, scan at least once every 8 hours.
Easy: It is easy to use, just apply the sensor once, track your glucose levels for up to 14 days. The sensor is water resistant in up to 1 meter (3 feet) of water.
Using a FreeStyle Libre CGM device is easy and it helps you to understand your glucose levels and manage them properly. It keeps a record of your glucose levels and shows your current glucose readings and glucose level trends. It indicates the fluctuation in your glucose levels and that helps you to maintain your glucose levels and make changes to manage it. CGM keeps you aware about your glucose levels.
Diabetes care and management are very doable when you are constantly monitoring your glucose levels, eating nutritious foods, and getting adequate exercise, along with recommended medication. I have used it as a caregiver and would recommend it to everyone wanting to monitor their glucose levels with ease and without pain.
To know more about Continuous Glucose Monitoring, visit this website.
You can buy Freestyle libre here.
The information mentioned in this document is only suggestive/for patient education and shall not be considered as a substitute for doctor’s advice or recommendations from Abbott. Please consult your doctor for more information
Any photos displayed are for illustrative purposes only. Any person depicted in such photos is a model.
