Glucose Monitoring Device Emerges as Potential Summer Fashion Trend
In the vibrant Summer 2025 issue of Town & Country, an intriguing article by Garrett Munce sheds light on a surprising new trend that's reshaping health and wellness: continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) for non-diabetics.
As the spring season unfolds, Prada crochet bags and Chloé jelly sandals continue to dominate fashion trends, but an unexpected accessory has also gained popularity—glucose monitors. These once-ubiquitous, sticky oblong devices are now a common sight in personal trainers' studios, black-tie affairs, and various settings, as more individuals embrace the benefits of CGM for their metabolic health.
CGM offers non-diabetics valuable real-time insights, providing a continuous 24/7 view of glucose levels. This allows individuals to understand how their body responds to different foods, exercise, and lifestyle factors, rather than relying on generic diet plans or calorie counting. By connecting glucose readings with diet and feelings, users can personalize nutrition and lifestyle choices, supporting weight loss, body recomposition, and improved workout responses, enhancing overall metabolic function.
CGM also helps users observe how insulin sensitivity and levels fluctuate, offering insights into maintaining hormonal health and better glucose variability, which are important for metabolic resilience and potentially slowing metabolic aging. Furthermore, CGM serves as an educational tool, helping users understand the impact of foods and other factors on glucose excursions, encouraging healthier choices and potentially reducing chronic metabolic stress, which is linked to aging and long-term health risks.
However, it's essential to interpret CGM data appropriately and understand individual variation to maximize benefits and avoid pitfalls. There is currently no consensus on "normal" glucose variation for non-diabetics or clear guidelines on glucose spike targets, so caution is advised to avoid anxiety or misinterpretation. Challenges include distinguishing glucose changes caused by stress versus food and the risk of over-monitoring leading to disordered eating behaviours.
The FDA approved the first over-the-counter Continuous Glucose Monitor (CGM) in 2024, making it accessible to non-diabetics for general metabolic health and longevity. Limited studies show the benefits of continuous glucose monitoring in people without diabetes, but it can still be a useful experiment for health-conscious individuals.
Maintaining stable glucose levels can offer numerous benefits, including improved energy, endurance, memory, mood, and cognitive performance. High glucose levels after eating are normal, but consistently spiking into the 160 or 180 range over a prolonged period can cause vascular damage and inflammation, which should be avoided for overall health and longevity.
As with any health tracker, paying too much attention to CGM readings can lead to anxiety, which can in turn contribute to orthorexia, an obsession with eating healthy food. Dr. Dallas Kingsbury, medical director of Danford Works, compares continuous glucose monitoring to a dashboard for one's metabolism, emphasising the importance of maintaining a balanced approach.
Despite these warnings, the "longevity brigades" are likely not deterred by such concerns, as they see the status that comes with sugar monitoring as increasing. Companies like Levels help users track their glucose levels in real time using AI-driven algorithms alongside a CGM, for a monthly fee. Tech CEO Nick Slavin, for example, wore a CGM for two weeks and found himself "healthily obsessed" with the data, but admits it might have become too much of a focus if worn longer.
In conclusion, continuous glucose monitoring offers non-diabetics valuable real-time insights for tailoring diet and lifestyle to improve metabolic health, support weight and hormonal balance, and potentially enhance longevity by maintaining healthier glucose patterns. However, interpreting data appropriately and understanding individual variation is critical to maximize benefits and avoid pitfalls.
- In the realm of health-and-wellness and fitness-and-exercise, an unexpected accessory has become popular: glucose monitors, a tool that provides valuable real-time insights into a person's metabolic health.
- As more individuals adopt continuous glucose monitoring (CGM), the fashion-and-beauty industry is not the only sector witnessing change – technology is playing a significant role in shaping lifestyle trends, with companies like Levels offering real-time glucose tracking.
- Art and style enthusiasts might find themselves intrigued by the potential crossover between fashion and glucose monitors, considering the growth in the wearable technology market and the increasing emphasis on health and wellness in recent years.
- Concurrently, as tech companies focus on lifestyle improvements through innovative products like continuous glucose monitors, scientists and researchers are conducting more studies to explore the impact of maintaining stable glucose levels on various aspects of overall health and well-being, such as energy, memory, and longevity.
