As a wellness editor and author, I am always experimenting with the newest well being tech, so I used to be naturally intrigued after I discovered that Oura Ring partnered with Dexcom’s Stelo, a steady glucose monitor designed for individuals with out diabetes. The aim of this collaboration is to assist on a regular basis individuals like me perceive how meals and common consuming habits affect blood sugar and total well being.
“By combining Stelo information with Oura’s current insights, we’re empowering members to higher perceive the cause-and-effect relationships between consuming patterns, power, temper and restoration — and finally make sustainable, science-backed way of life modifications,” Maz Brumand, vp of product for Oura, instructed CNET.
I’ve used my Oura ring every day for the previous three years to monitor my sleep, restoration and stress. Nevertheless it was the primary time I heard {that a} health tracker can monitor blood sugar ranges. I examined the Stelo CGM with my Oura Ring for 2 weeks, and I can say that it modified the way in which I eat and transfer, and I believe this kind of biofeedback is useful for everybody, even if you happen to don’t have diabetes.
What’s steady glucose monitoring, and why is it essential?
Your blood sugar, or blood glucose, refers back to the measurement of sugar in your blood. In accordance with the Cleveland Clinic, glucose is the principle supply of power in your physique — it is what powers your muscle tissue, mind and even your cells. Once you eat sure meals (significantly carbohydrates), your glucose rises, and your physique responds by releasing insulin to shuttle that sugar into cells for power or storage. On the flip aspect, if you happen to expertise frequent spikes or crashes (even when you do not have diabetes ), it might probably affect your power, sleep, temper and even long-term metabolic well being. When your physique would not want glucose instantly, it shops it as glycogen in your muscle tissue and liver.
For individuals with diabetes, monitoring glucose ranges is essential. However is it essential to do the identical for the remainder of us with no prognosis? To an extent, I believe so. Monitoring your blood sugar all through the day and seeing how your physique reacts to completely different meals can reveal rather a lot about your cravings, sleep and metabolic well being. “Glucose is a real-time window into metabolic well being, which underpins how we really feel day after day — our power, focus, temper and sleep — and the way resilient we’re over time,” Brumand says.
With the rise of wearable glucose sensors like Stelo, these with out diabetes can now get insights into how their consuming habits affect their our bodies (with out finger pricks or a prescription).
What’s a ‘regular’ glucose vary, and are spikes unhealthy?
Earlier than utilizing a CGM, I believed blood sugar was both steady or erratic, with no room for in-between spikes. As soon as I started monitoring my glucose every day, I rapidly discovered that spikes are utterly regular, particularly after meals and snacks.
Most individuals will see glucose ranges rise and drop all through the day. In accordance with the American Diabetes Affiliation, a common goal vary for adults with out pre-diabetes or diabetes is between 70 and 140mg/dL (observe that Oura additionally follows this vary, and it is what customers can count on to see of their graphs). It is also value highlighting that 70 to 100mg/dL is taken into account regular for fasting (significantly within the morning earlier than having meals), and beneath 140 mg/dL is frequent, particularly after meals.
“Scientific research present that even in wholesome people, a average glucose spike (rise above 140mg/dL) can happen every day. In truth, analysis means that wholesome adults will stay above 140mg/dL for about half-hour, as much as 2 hours a day, which is often 1 to three short-lived glucose spikes”, says Renee Fitton, registered dietitian and director of schooling at L-Nutra, a diet expertise firm.
Fitton additional defined that the quantity and frequency of glucose spikes rely on numerous elements, primarily what and while you’re consuming. These spiked can be affected by different elements like stress stage, train, dehydration and even whether or not you could have a sunburn.
Many glucose screens use a customized vary that adapts to your physique’s baseline and patterns over time. When your graph, it is essential to take into account that context and traits matter greater than one-off spikes. For instance, seeing a spike after dessert is not an indication that one thing is incorrect. It is a signal that your physique is doing its job. What issues most is how rapidly your glucose returns to baseline and the way typically your ranges keep elevated over time.
“I’d not see indicators for concern for infrequent (one to 3 occasions per day) average spikes (lower than 160mg/dL) that resolve inside about 30 minutes. When reaching extra frequent, particularly if they’re larger spikes (for instance, above 180mg/dL), that take a very long time to resolve (over 60 minutes), then there could also be considerations about metabolic well being,” Fitton defined. “A totally flat glucose curve isn’t one thing that we intention for; you need some mild ups and downs as an indication of wholesome metabolic flexibility.”
How I arrange the Stelo monitor with my Oura Ring
You’ll be able to order the Stelo sensor by way of ouraring.com ($99 for 2 sensors). I obtained a small field with the sensors and straightforward directions. Making use of it to the again of my higher arm took lower than 2 minutes and was surprisingly painless. And sure, there’s a small needle concerned. I am petrified of needles, so I spent a while mentally getting ready to prick myself, however to my disbelief, I did not really feel it in any respect. The sound the ejector makes is fairly loud, although. I generally assume the sound acted as a diversion to my mind, and that is why I did not really feel something. However, nonetheless, it was a reasonably pain-free expertise. As soon as in place, I paired it to the Stelo app, and it robotically mirrored throughout the Oura app. Every sensor tracks your glucose stage 24/7 for as much as 15 days.
Left Picture: CGM within the self-injector. Proper picture: CGM on the again of my proper arm.
From the Oura app, I may see how my glucose ranges fluctuated all through the day. You’ll be able to simply entry it on the high of the app, the place you additionally see different information metrics like sleep, coronary heart price, exercise and readiness rating (a personalised rating, starting from 0 to 100, that gives a snapshot of how nicely your physique has recovered from the day before today’s actions and sleep).
How even my ‘wholesome’ meals decisions raised my blood sugar (and that is OK)
One of the vital eye-opening elements of my testing was seeing how a few of my favourite wholesome staples performed out on the glucose graph. An ideal instance of this was my favourite pressed juice.
I had a pressed juice within the morning that contained pineapple, beets, carrots, ginger, cucumber and lemon. It is nutrient-dense, nevertheless it additionally spiked my glucose above what’s thought-about my wholesome vary for about 6 minutes (a small window and nonetheless thought-about optimum for my age and total metabolic well being). This was sufficient to make me rethink how and after I eat fruit-heavy drinks.
The subsequent day, I experimented with having a fruit smoothie as an alternative of juice. I made a do-it-yourself smoothie with berries, banana, plant-based protein powder, peanut butter, soy milk and oats. This smoothie stored my glucose utterly in vary (zero minutes above my private threshold). The added protein and fiber from the fruit, oatmeal, peanut butter and protein powder helped sluggish the absorption of pure sugars into my bloodstream.
What I discovered: Even pure fruit juices may cause glucose spikes, particularly when consumed on an empty abdomen and with none protein or fiber. Smoothies that embody protein, fats and fiber will help maintain spikes at bay and assist stabilize your power ranges.
Steadiness your meals with protein, fat and fiber
Later that week, I had sushi rolls with a aspect of edamame for dinner. To my shock, my glucose ranges stayed inside vary the entire time. Oura Advisor (Oura’s AI coach) even identified that this meals mixture supplied protein and fiber, which seemingly contributed to the regular glucose ranges. This second was actually encouraging for me. It made me understand that I needn’t drastically change what I eat. By simply being extra intentional about how I pair my meals, I can drastically enhance the affect they’ve on my blood glucose. Pairing your meals with wholesome fat like avocados, nuts, seeds and olive oil also can sluggish digestion and due to this fact the absorption of sugars.
Fitton explains that that is primarily attributable to what occurs in our digestive tract, even earlier than the vitamins get to our bloodstream. Protein, fiber and wholesome fat work in their very own method to sluggish the absorption of easy carbohydrates into the bloodstream, making a slower, extra gradual launch of sugars into the blood. These elements flip what may very well be a glucose spike into a gradual rise that your physique can clear steadily.
“The most important space of concern when managing our blood sugar ranges is limiting refined carbohydrates. Once you do select a refined-carb merchandise (a plain cracker, white flour tortilla, cookies, and so on.), attempt to pair it as an alternative of consuming it solo: add cheese, nut butter or a handful of edamame to blunt the glucose rise, and select a higher-fiber model of your carbohydrate supply when attainable (for instance, whole-grain crackers) so the carbs come packaged with their very own velocity restrict,” Fitton says.
Cake and a stroll equal regular blood sugar?
One of many extra shocking issues I discovered was that blood sugar stability is not nearly what you eat. It is also about what you do after you eat. One afternoon, I had a slice of cake for a snack. No fiber or protein added, simply the cake (I had lunch a number of hours earlier than).
As an alternative of my blood sugar spiking, my glucose ranges remained steadily in vary. The caveat? I took a brisk stroll after having my dessert. It wasn’t something strenuous, only a quick 15-minute stroll round my neighborhood. Nevertheless it was sufficient to assist my physique course of and use the glucose extra effectively.
“The physique is aware of that train calls for extra power, and so it helps open up our cells to take in sugar (power) and take away it from our blood. A ten-minute stroll burns about 30 to 40 energy, and your physique will get that power from circulating glucose or saved glycogen,” Fitton defined.
After consuming cake and going for a stroll, my blood sugar noticed a slight spike, however stayed inside vary.
Taking a stroll after meals has lengthy been beneficial by consultants for metabolic well being, however seeing the impact in actual time made it click on for me. I do assume that having the cake after having a balanced meal with protein and fiber additionally contributed to my regular ranges of blood sugar.
Typically, it isn’t about utterly eliminating our favourite treats or carbs, however extra so about timing, meals pairing and motion.
3 methods I discovered to flatten my glucose curve with out sacrificing my favourite meals
Earlier than utilizing the glucose sensor with Oura, I assumed blood sugar spikes have been largely about meals and the way they affect your physique. I additionally thought the one method to handle them was to chop carbs or drastically change my weight loss program. However over these two weeks, I skilled firsthand how and after I eat (and transfer) matter simply as a lot as what I eat. I discovered that these three methods helped maintain my glucose ranges in test.
Pair carbs and sweets with protein, fiber and wholesome fat
After I had a berry smoothie with protein powder and soy milk, my glucose ranges stayed regular. In distinction, after I had a fruit smoothie earlier that week, my blood sugar ranges spiked and crashed extra rapidly.
Takeaway: Carbs on their very own, particularly refined and processed carbs, can spike blood sugar rapidly, however including protein or fats slows digestion and results in a extra mild spike.
Meals pairing examples: Apples and peanut butter, toast with avocado, rice with beans or one other protein.
Stroll it out (particularly after sweets)
After I had cake as a snack, I used to be certain my graph would spike dramatically, nevertheless it did not due to my stroll (and consuming a balanced meal earlier than).
A easy stroll, even simply 10 to fifteen minutes, will help offset blood sugar spikes. This small however easy behavior helps me now get pleasure from treats with out the crash later.
Timing your meals issues
I additionally seen that after I ate higher-carb meals earlier within the day, my physique processed them higher than after I had them later at evening. Breakfast smoothies and bowls stored my ranges steady, whereas the identical smoothie after 9 p.m. induced extra spikes.
“In relation to blood sugar administration, we see that within the morning our physique often has a spike in cortisol (a stress hormone) that may truly assist our physique take up sugar in a short time and rapidly handle blood sugar. Consuming within the morning can even calm the cortisol response, lowering the stress in your physique. In the event you wait too lengthy to eat, extra cortisol can create irritation and likewise produce bigger glucose spikes while you do eat,” defined Fitton.
Fitton additional defined that, conversely, within the night, the sugar administration methods in our our bodies begin powering down and aren’t pretty much as good at serving to blood sugar get into the cells. So it is very important strive to not eat too late; in any other case, you may most likely see blood sugar go up and look forward to longer.
That does not imply you may’t eat carbs or treats at evening, however consuming them earlier within the day when insulin sensitivity tends to be larger could make an actual distinction.
