CGM - Continuous Glucose Monitor

[euro]

Dexcom does not, and I don’t believe any of the others do either.
That said, in addition to the sensors, you also need to buy the battery/transmitter. The Dexcom one lasts 3 months, the others may be longer.

This was true for the Dexcom 6 model. The new Dexcom 7 combines the sensor and transmitter all in one, much smaller device. Dex 7 has been out for the better part of a year now, so I suspect they will likely take the Dex 6 off the market soon (well, whenever they run out of the stock they still have).

 

[schenbew]

Buying the patches doesn't seem that expensive at Costco. We have iphones to read them. But, is there a subscription charge for the app for the phone to read the patches?

Not for the Libre3 - no charge to install or use it. I use my iPhone.

 

[Zathras]

This was true for the Dexcom 6 model. The new Dexcom 7 combines the sensor and transmitter all in one, much smaller device. Dex 7 has been out for the better part of a year now, so I suspect they will likely take the Dex 6 off the market soon (well, whenever they run out of the stock they still have).

Ah, very cool! I hope there are some price savings to be found there.

The Dexcom 6 won’t be coming off the market until the Dexcom 7 integrates with the Omnipod pumps. Currently that integration is only available with the Dexcom 6.

 

[zl55lz]

Interesting. I've bought the finger prick tester (without a prescription) because I wanted to test more than one a year, which would be only during my physical. Pricking my finger is painful and you never get use to it. I would assume these new systems are more pain free. That alone might be worth some added cost. The ability to monitor would be nice but I consider it sort of overkill for what I want. I just want to test maybe once every 3 months.

I think I have seen A1c tests on shelves at stores, which measures the average blood sugar over about 3 months. Not sure what is involved. You can ask your doctor for what is medically appropriate for your situation.

 

[bjorn2bwild]

Announced yesterday, the device will be available summer 2024 according to Dexcom.
The price was not listed.

Today, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration cleared for marketing the first over-the-counter (OTC) continuous glucose monitor (CGM). The Dexcom Stelo Glucose Biosensor System is an integrated CGM (iCGM) intended for anyone 18 years and older who does not use insulin, such as individuals with diabetes treating their condition with oral medications, or those without diabetes who want to better understand how diet and exercise may impact blood sugar levels

https://www.fda.gov/news-events/pre...first-over-counter-continuous-glucose-monitor


https://www.dexcom.com/en-us/stelo

 

[audreyh1]

Wow, big news!

 

[braumeister]

The device presents blood glucose measurements and trends every 15 minutes in the accompanying app. Users should not make medical decisions based on the device’s output without talking to their healthcare provider.

But it should be a great help in making diet decisions.
I know that Peter Attia and others have long advocated the use of a CGM for that purpose, as it can give you exquisitely detailed analysis of what your food intake does once it's in your system.

 

[Gremlin]

This is great news. I talked my doc into prescribing a CGM (despite not being pre diabetic) and used them for several months. It was a real eye opener!

 

[yakers]

I'll be getting one for sure, tired of daily and other time finger sticks. Was PreD (A1C 5.9) and cannot get a prescription from Dr. Managed to get blood glucose down via low carb diet an intermitent fasting but that seems less effective after a couple years. This could help a lot of people become aware of issues BEFORE they blow up.

 

[audreyh1]

Yes, this will help identify specific foods or food combinations that trigger blood sugar spikes, also how your blood sugar behaves after exercise and overnight/early morning.

 

[euro]

I'll be getting one for sure, tired of daily and other time finger sticks. Was PreD (A1C 5.9) and cannot get a prescription from Dr. Managed to get blood glucose down via low carb diet an intermitent fasting but that seems less effective after a couple years. This could help a lot of people become aware of issues BEFORE they blow up.

It's very odd that your doc won't prescribe it as prediabetic. Actually, the problem is not how you can get the GCM without prescription (you can and I will be happy to send you the info if you are interested), but of course, if you get it without prescription, then your insurance will not cover it. In my experience, the non prescription price is 2 to 3x of the prescription co-pay (assuming a half-way decent drug coverage).

Finally, it is not unusual that the positive effects of a low-carb diet tend to weaken over time with regard to glucose status. What happens is that your body learns to ramp up the conversion of protein to glucose (aka gluconeogenesis). You can fight that battle by reducing your protein intake, but needless to say, a low carb/low protein diet is basically just an all-fat diet and not very practical. That said, just keeping an eye on protein amounts may well work for you. What I have found much more effective is to take up weight training on top of low-carb diet. This builds muscle, which uses up protein and naturally reduces glucose. Muscles are glucose sponges. Personally, I really dislike weight training (always have - no problem with cardio, just can't stand weights), but I finally convinced myself that weight training has so many advantages (really, massively important for balance/fall issues as you get older)that I simply HAVE GOT to practice some of it. So, I finally started going back to the gym, just for weight exercises. 2-3 times a week for about an hour. So far, I have been impressed! I do use CGM and my glucose, while not terrible before, has dropped about 10-15 points, on average. If I can sustain that, this is an amazing win. I still don't like pumping weights, but this is quite some positive reinforcement!

 

[braumeister]

Personally, I really dislike weight training (always have - no problem with cardio, just can't stand weights), but I finally convinced myself that weight training has so many advantages (really, massively important for balance/fall issues as you get older)that I simply HAVE GOT to practice some of it.

You took the words right out of my mouth.

 

[imjustawarrior]

Announced yesterday, the device will be available summer 2024 according to Dexcom.
The price was not listed.


https://www.fda.gov/news-events/pre...first-over-counter-continuous-glucose-monitor


https://www.dexcom.com/en-us/stelo

This is exciting. I signed up on the dexcom website to be notified once it is released. I saw one source that thought it would be about $100/mo.

I would probably use it for a month or two to understand how my diet and activities affect my blood sugar. My last A1C was 5.6. I'm fine. The CGM would just be something interesting to play with. I'm retired. I get to waste my time however I like.