Many social media stars specializing in "beauty" and "fitness" stick on their arms a circular patch that is a blood glucose sensor described as a "revolutionary" tool to save the lives of diabetic patients, and is also widely used to monitor weight gain, which is criticized by the medical community.

Whether on TikTok, Instagram, on the beach, in yoga class or in the kitchen, more and more social media stars are promoting this tool, which enables its user to "know their blood sugar in real time" and thus "know what foods to avoid."

Social media stars in this field were influenced by Jesse Inchospe, known on social media as "Glucosegoddess" (the goddess of glucose), whose book "Glucose Revolution" was a bestseller last summer.

This book calls for sugar control to reduce its consequences and effects, and to be able to lose weight.

To make it easier to better understand metabolism, Enchospé, a biochemist, equipped herself with a blood glucose sensor.

Revolutionary development

The device is no larger than a two-euro coin, and its results are easy to read by swiping the smartphone in front of the sensor, a "revolutionary" development for people with diabetes, according to cardiologist Jean-François Thibaut of the French Federation of Diabetes Patients, who stated that before the device was introduced to the market in 2017, he and others like him who suffer from this disease had to prick themselves with the needle of the measuring machine in order to monitor blood sugar, which is "painful" and annoying.

This sensor stands out from other measuring devices in that it also predicts hypoglycemic crises or rises, and Tibault noted that this "changed the lives of diabetic children" who before him "had to wake up at night to make sure their children had no hypoglycemia."

There is no need to obtain a prescription to buy this type of sensor, and the best-selling one in France, for example, is the one produced by the pharmaceutical company Abbott.

The device quickly captured athletes, many of whom now post their blood sugar curves on social networks by comparing them to the distances they travel while running, for example, and this led Abbott to develop a sensor for athletes.

Sports nutritionist Nicola Oppino said these sensors were "extremely important for endurance sports where glycemic factors are important for performance".

Silly tendency

In turn, American nutritionist Christine Byrne downplayed the benefits of sensors for people without diabetes, and stated in this regard that "the body is able to reduce blood sugar to a healthy level."

The specialist stressed the need to follow "balanced meals" instead of constant monitoring of blood sugar, which also depends on "a person's stress, activities and sleep."

Dr. Opino warned that relying on this device is harmful, as the user may only focus on it and neglect everything else, "which may cause eating disorders."

Karine Kleimann, an obesity specialist at the French National Institute of Health and Medical Research, agreed, fearing that "people who use it without consulting a doctor will overinterpret or underestimate the results, leading to inappropriate changes in eating habits, for example."

Bruno Malin of the National Syndicate of Pharmacists questioned the importance of "using over-the-counter slimming devices or medicines", noting that the demand for "Freestyle" has led to difficulties in providing quantities that meet the high demand.

Abuse of Uzambik

Pharmacists have previously complained about the "misuse" of the anti-diabetic drug Ozambic, as people who do not suffer from the disease seek to obtain it to lose weight.

On Twitter, some users with diabetes criticized what they called a "ridiculous tendency", with one writing: "If it took people to prick their fingertips 6 times a day, would they do it? Stop inventing problems for yourselves that you don't have in the first place."