From the Ozempic craze to the Glucose Goddess effect, it’s clear that blood sugar—and understanding how glucose impacts their our, hormones, and overall health—is trending. So it’s not super surprising to see detailed videos popping up on our FYPs that promise balancing blood sugar is the secret to optimal health.
Take the Glucose Goddess, for example. A French biochemist called Jessie Inchauspé started monitoring her own glucose and sharing charts and lengthy captions of her findings to social media. The user went absolutely viral online for her easy-to-understand science- and research-backed lifestyle hacks, tips, and recipes that aim to help readers prevent glucose spikes throughout the day. (Check out our full interview with Inchauspé, here.)
Inchauspé’s success proves that there’s more to getting a comprehensive picture of what wellness looks like outside of diet and exercise, and that monitoring your blood glucose levels should’t be reserved to diabetics alone.
Jessie by Iulia Matei
Why is blood sugar important?
When doctors talk about blood sugar levels, they’re referring to the quantity of sugar in the blood that has been measured. Blood is the body’s principal transport system, and it provides all of the vitamins, minerals, oxygen, and water that your cells require. Because glucose is the measurable form of sugar in the blood, the terms “blood sugar” and “blood glucose” are interchangeable.
“Blood sugar is glucose in your bloodstream,” Florence Comite, MD, an endocrinologist and founder of the Center for Precision Medicine and Healthy Longevity, tells Glamour. “It is your mind and body’s primary source of energy, and initially comes from food, in particular carbohydrates.”
As for why that matters? “Glucose provides the energy for the proper function of all your organs and to power your brain activity,” she says. “Playing such an important and all-encompassing role, sugar’s balance in your body needs to be properly maintained to remain regulated, without dramatic highs and lows that can compromise optimal health over time leading to disease of aging, diabetes, heart attacks, stroke, Alzheimer’s and others.”
What is a glucose spike?
When we deliver too much glucose too quickly to our body during a meal, we experience what is called a glucose spike (if you’re picturing a fabulous graph, you’re on the right track).
This is not something that only affects people with diabetes. Most of us experience glucose spikes (about 80% of the population, according to some estimates), and unfortunately, these spikes carry with them consequences that can harm both our physical and mental health.
How else does blood sugar affect your health?
Type 2 diabetes and pre-diabetes aren’t the only reasons to keep your glucose levels in check. Unstable blood sugar can lead to sleep disorders, poor sleep over all, dizziness and lightheadedness, blurred vision, excess weight gain, fatigue and low energy, and—most well-known of all—mood swings.
At a smaller level, spikes and drops leave people feeling tired and hungry. You know that beckoning choccy bar that we all can’t resist at 3pm? Well, you’ll probably realise that the slump you experience a few hours later is largely to blame for the initial sugar spike. And you know that gnawing hunger you feel every few hours? Yep, that’s largely due to those same sugar spikes.
The best blood glucose monitors
Anyone that checks their blood sugar regularly can tell you that the right glucose monitor can make all the difference. Whether you’re prediabetic, Type 2, or Type 1, or have another type of blood sugar issue, more than accuracy, the best glucometers offer a variety of features that help make managing blood sugars a bit easier.
From a continuous glucose monitor that you have implanted in your arm, to traditional monitors (the old pin prick test) here, five to consider:
Best overall for new users:
The Contour Next One
If you’re looking for a glucose meter that’s easy to use, extremely accurate, comes from a trusted source and is affordable, consider this blood glucose monitoring system from Contour. It’s the more traditional kind (simple and intuitive), and can read your glucose in as little as 5 seconds.
Best for blood-free readings:
FreeStyle Libre
Like other CGMs, the FreeStyle Libre uses interstitial fluids instead of blood to measure blood glucose. All you have to do is wear a sensor on your upper arm, and wave the accompanying monitor above the sensor in order to get your glucose readings. You can repeat the process as often as you’d like. To keep the Libre system working, you do have to reapply a new sensor to your arm every 14 days.
Best for detail:
Guardian Connect System
If you want something more detailed, give the Guardian Connect System a try. Like the FreeStyle Libre and Eversense,it’s worn on your arm to measure glucose via interstitial fluids. But unlike any other CGM currently on the market, the Guardian Connect compiles time in range data. This data tells you how long your glucose is in your personal ideal range on any given day. The downsides? It’s pricy and you need to change out your sensor every 7 days.
Best budget blood glucose tracker:
Rite Aid TrueMetrix Meter
If you want something on the more affordable end, consider the Rite Aid TrueMetrix. This straightforward traditional-style product allows you to program four reminder alarms, and the results can be processed in as quickly as 4 seconds. You can also store up to 500 test results on the device. But yes, it does require the finger pinpricking as opposed to the ease of the on-arm device.
Best for nutritionist support:
Nutrisense CGM
While pricey, if you opt for the Nutrisense CGM, the company will not only take care of the CGM prescription, but will provide you with access to one-on-one support from a nutritionist. Cost depends on the duration of plan you choose and includes CGMs, free shipping on monthly CGM deliveries, 1 month of free nutritionist support (after that, the cost is $100 per month), and access to app features and a members only community.
Most advanced option:
Vively CGM
The Vively CGM Program pairs data and in-app guidance to help you monitor your sugar levels. Via the app you can access your glucose data, spot trends, and connect with your healthcare provider. It also does cool things like track meals, sync with your other health apps provide support from an Australian Practising Dietitian.
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