[00:00.00]Medical device companies Abbott and Dexcom make small devices that attach to the skin and monitor the amount of glucose, or sugar, in the blood.
[00:15.70]These devices were first made to help people with diabetes.
[00:22.39]Diabetes is a medical condition that prevents the body from properly digesting sugar and turning it into energy.
[00:32.16]The devices permit people to make changes to their diet or take medication such as insulin to help control their glucose levels.
[00:45.24]But the devices are also being used by some Olympic athletes.
[00:50.12]The monitors help runners and swimmers learn how the food they eat affects their energy level.
[01:00.34]Dutch long-distance runner Abdi Nageeye is paid to wear a device made by Abbott.
[01:09.62]Nageeye was the silver medal winner at the Tokyo Olympics.
[01:15.16]He will try to get another medal during this summer's Olympics in Paris, France. The Games begin on July 26.
[01:26.04]Nageeye pays attention to his sleeping and eating each day.
[01:31.44]So, it makes sense that he would pay attention to the sugar in his blood.
[01:37.43]"That's your energy, actually, that's your fuel. We have to monitor that," said Nageeye
[01:44.91]The information that comes from the monitor helps Nageeye get closer to an "effortless" or stress-free run.
[01:54.53]The devices are called continuous glucose monitors, or CGMs.
[02:00.71]In the past, they required a prescription from a medical doctor.
[02:06.88]But now, although there is no official proof that the devices help with athletic performance, the companies that make them are getting permission to sell them to regular people.
[02:18.92]"I do see a day where CGM is certainly going to be used outside of diabetes in a big way," said Dexcom's Chief Operating Officer Jacob Leach.
[02:31.30]In March, the U.S. gave Leach's company permission to sell its Stelo device without a prescription.
[02:39.36]It is expected to go on sale this summer.
[02:43.09]Abbott pays Kenyan marathoner Eliud Kipchoge to wear its device.
[02:50.90]He has won the last two Olympic marathons.
[02:54.57]He uses the device to monitor his calories and the intensity of his workouts.
[03:00.38]Abbott said its device, called Libre Rio, will also be available soon without a prescription.
[03:09.32]Both companies saw sales growth of over 20 percent for their wearable CGMs for diabetes patients in 2023.
[03:21.14]A research company called GlobalData sees the growth continuing at a rate of 15 percent per year through 2031, as more people become interested in using the devices to help with weight loss.
[03:36.60]Sports researcher Filip Larsen sees the CGMs as a way to better understand the exertion levels of serious athletes.
[03:47.92]Larsen is a professor at the Swedish School of Sport and Health Sciences.
[03:54.33]"A big guesswork for endurance athletes has always been: am I training hard enough or am I training too hard? It seems with CGMs, we have a better understanding," he said.
[04:09.74]Larsen also works with a company called svexa, which researches sports performance.
[04:17.27]He has already examined CGM data from some athletes and sports teams.
[04:24.40]Larsen notes there is little proven science about how to help athletes perform better using the data that comes from the monitors.
[04:34.00]"Most researchers cannot give you the exact answers.
[04:38.37]In five years, we will know 10 times as much as we do now," he said.
[04:44.00]But the possibility of finding important data means many people are looking into monitoring blood glucose.
[04:51.01]Greg Cox is a sports dietician and associate professor at Bond University in Australia.
[05:01.15]He works with swimmers, rowers and track and field athletes.
[05:05.90]Cox said a recent test of top athletes proved inconclusive.
[05:11.84]The test restricted an athlete's calories before an intense exercise session.
[05:19.27]He and Larsen said they were unsure how valuable a CGM would be for a regular person who used it without medical supervision.
[05:29.66]But for the companies that make the devices, the non-medical market is large.
[05:36.64]Abbott says it believes the CGMs will help people lead healthier lives with "improved energy, mood, focus, sleep."
[05:48.38]I'm Dan Friedell.
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Words in This Story
monitor -v. to observe or pay attention to something
athlete -n. a person who competes in sports events
stress -n. the pain, effort or worry a person feels
regular -adj. something that is normal, routine or usual, not special
exertion -n. the amount of energy spent doing a task, usually a difficult one
inconclusive -adj. not producing a clear result
mood -n. the way a person feels
focus -n. the ability to pay attention to something for a long period of time
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