Here’s the lowdown on continuous glucose monitors
Tracking your time in range with CGMs can give you a more detailed picture of how your diabetes management is going.
They help calculate your time in range, which helps you and your health care professional understand how well your diabetes management is going.
How do CGMs work?
Through a small sensor in your skin, CGMs continuously measure the amount of glucose in the fluid between your cells, or interstitial fluid. This is called interstitial glucose monitoring. The amount of glucose in your interstitial fluidInterstitial fluidThe fluid in between the cells in your tissues. Continuous glucose monitors (CGMs) constantly measure the amount of glucose in your interstitial fluid, which is closely related to the amount of glucose in your blood. is closely related to the amount of glucose in your blood—so through your CGM, you can get a good idea of what your blood glucose levels are like.
CGMs send information to your computer, smartphone, or tablet to show you your glucose levels over last few hours or days. This can also be shared with your health care professional, so they can understand the ups and downs of your blood glucose. If your levels have been too high or too low, they can send an alert to you, your health care professional, or others.
CGMs are recommended for people who are likely to have blood sugar levels that are too high or low. That means people with type 1 diabetes or type 2 diabetes who use insulin. Your doctor may also recommend a CGM if you have type 2 diabetes but do not use insulin.
CGMs and time in range
Because CGMs give you a continuous stream of information, they can calculate your time in range. Time in range is the amount of time you spend in your target blood sugar range without going too low or too high.
Example Time in Range Readings
For most people, the goal is to spend 70% of your day, or roughly 17 hours, in your target range. In other words, 70% of the glucose readings from your CGM should be in range over the course of a day. "In range" is usually a reading between 70 and 180 mg/dL. Talk to your health care professional about time in range and blood sugar goals that are right for you.
Why does this matter?
Using a CGM comes with a few benefits.
- Easy to use and integrate seamlessly into phone apps
- No more need for finger sticks (for some CGMs)
- Real-time treatment decisions can be made
- Additional safety measures, including alerts when your blood sugar is out of range
- Data collected is shareable with anyone you choose, so people can get in touch to make sure you’re okay if something goes wrong
Monitoring your time in range with a CGM is particularly helpful for people who are likely to have blood glucose levels that are too high or too low. That means people with type 1 diabetes or people with type 2 diabetes who use insulin, especially when it’s short-acting. A longer-acting insulin may help people with type 2 diabetes increase their time in range.
Time in range can help you and your health care professional understand how daily habits like physical activity impact your blood glucose. Plus, the more time you spend in range, the more likely you are to hit your A1C targets and the less likely you are to develop certain diabetes-related complications. Talk to your health care professional to see if a CGM could help you better manage your diabetes.
