Advancing diabetes care: how predictive technology improves daily management
Diagnosed with type 1 diabetes in 1985, Hanna Boëthius faced significant struggles due to the limited tools available. Over the years, advancements in technology have transformed diabetes management, shifting from reactive to proactive approaches.
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I'm Hanna Boethius. I am a type 1 diabetic with 39 years of lived experience. I’ve spent the past 12 years as an active patient leader and patient advocate. It’s been a roller coaster — like it is for most. I was diagnosed in 1985, and back then, we didn’t have any of the tools we have today. We had very slow, very inaccurate finger-prick measurements for blood sugar. We had very slow, very inflexible insulins that you had to take at exactly set times. So it was a completely different world — living with type 1 diabetes back then.
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I became a diabetes advocate because I wanted to show that there are many different voices in this community — that there are several different ways of managing your own diabetes — and that you have to find what works for you. That was really my first motivation.
No matter how much you try, at some point — especially if you’ve lived with type 1 diabetes for a long time — you will encounter mental and emotional hurdles. And that’s just part of it. No matter how well you manage everything you have to do daily — all those nearly 200 decisions you have to make each day — it still depends on how you manage it.
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And sometimes, even though you try really hard, it’s going to be about rolling with the punches — especially with type 1 diabetes.
Being able to tell even just a little bit into the future is actually a superpower when it comes to handling the massive amount of data that comes with living with type 1 diabetes. I think it can bring more security, more confidence, and more peace of mind in your own care and your own management — which I believe every person with diabetes deserves.
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What predictive technologies also do is shift your diabetes management from a very reactive state — where you’re only responding to the numbers you already have, reacting to what’s already happened during the day — to a more proactive way of managing your blood sugars, your diabetes, and your life.
That makes things a lot easier. And I think that is a fantastic gift to every person with diabetes.
Hanna Boëthius was first diagnosed with type 1 diabetes in 1985. Growing up, Hanna struggled with her diagnosis, being the only one with diabetes in her class for many years. “Back then, it was a different world for people with diabetes. We didn’t have the tools we have today – we had very slow and inaccurate finger-prick measurements for blood sugar and inflexible insulin that you had to take at set times,” says Hanna.
Today, with around 537 million adults* worldwide diabetes is a global epidemic and a strain on healthcare systems. For people like Hanna, living with diabetes is a lifetime of continuous ups and downs. It means managing multiple devices and loads of therapy data 365 days a year – never taking a break. It also involves making hundreds of therapy decisions every day while trying to maintain physical health, mental well-being and blood glucose levels that are ‘in range’ throughout daily activities such as sleeping, eating and travelling.
Hanna became a diabetes advocate to demonstrate that everyone must find what works for them in managing their diabetes. “I can describe hypoglycaemia, how that feels and how it affects me, but I am the one who needs to manage it. Finding a community of others with diabetes and the right technology helps to navigate this uncertainty,” says Hanna.
If you can buy people time to respond proactively and effectively, you can not only avoid hypoglycaemia and make people more confident in managing it, but also ease the burden of diabetes management overall.
It is common for people with diabetes to experience fear and unawareness of hypoglycaemia – a potentially life-threatening low blood glucose level. Prediction is vital for successful diabetes management. “If you can buy people time to respond proactively and effectively, you can not only avoid hypoglycaemia and make people more confident in managing it, but also ease the burden of diabetes management overall and avoid stigma,” adds Prof. Katharine Barnard-Kelly, PhD, Chartered Health Psychologist.
Continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) devices can help to better manage glucose levels daily. They provide warning alerts for high and low blood glucose results, which support patients with valuable information about the effects of diets, lifestyle and medication. Additionally, the latest developments in predictive algorithms can indicate a low blood glucose risk, continuously forecast glucose levels and estimate a potential nocturnal hypoglycaemia risk, enabling users to anticipate potential issues and make timely therapy adjustments.
Enhancing the technology we currently possess is already mind-blowing. It makes diabetes management easier and brings more moments of happiness – a gift for anyone living with diabetes.
For Hanna, predictive technology can offer a significant advantage: foreseeing blood glucose levels even a little into the future provides a ‘superpower-like ability’ to manage the extensive data associated with diabetes, in particular type 1. Predictive technologies can have the capacity to shift diabetes management from a reactive state, where individuals respond to current and past data, to a proactive approach. This transition empowers people with diabetes to maintain optimal control of their glucose levels. It aids therapy decisions and helps prevent dangerous short- and long-term complications. “Enhancing the technology we currently possess is already mind-blowing, considering the advancements made over the past 39 years. Ultimately, it makes diabetes management easier and brings more moments of happiness – a gift for anyone living with diabetes,” adds Hanna.