Diabetes is a growing problem in India, with prevalence amongst adults estimated to double from 77 million diagnosed people in 2019 to 134.2 million by 2045. With the high costs involved and the strain it exerts on India’s healthcare systems, it is one of the major concerns for the nation that must be managed and mitigated.

According to recent projections from the International Diabetes Federation and the Global Burden of Disease project, about 98 million Indians could develop diabetes by 2030.

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Considering the projected increase in the number, BeatO recently conducted a study on the efficacy of digitally supported and real-time self-monitoring of blood glucose-driven personalized and contextual counselling in patients with Type 2 Diabetes.

The retrospective study was conducted with 7111, adult type 2 diabetic patients with the majority over the age of 50 years. The study showed that monitoring with connected devices which allow for real-time tracking of blood sugar via digital apps followed by a personalized counselling session by a certified diabetes educator or coach, fasting blood sugar levels of people with diabetes went down by approximately 10%.

The medical research study published in an international peer-reviewed medical journal with a high impact factor – Diabetes, Metabolic Syndrome and Obesity: Targets and Therapy by Dovepress were authored by Dr Mudit Sabharwal, Senior Consultant Diabetologist & Head of Medical Affairs – BeatO, Dr Anoop Misra, Executive Chairman, Fortis C-DOC Hospital for Diabetes and Allied Sciences, Dr Amerta Ghosh, Attending Consultant Diabetologist, Fortis C-DOC Hospital and Gautam Chopra, CEO, Co-Founder BeatO.

The study highlights that the use of the BeatO app and its integrated connected care ecosystem providing data-driven instant feedback and real-time contextualized counselling by certified diabetes educators is effective in achieving significant improvement in blood sugar levels for patients with Type 2 diabetes. 75% of them were able to improve their blood sugar levels after just one counselling session.

Furthermore, it was noted that after counselling and through alerts via BeatO, 81.4% of patients did not experience any hypoglycaemia episode, that is, dangerously low blood sugar levels (<70 mg/dl). Additionally, the study noted that post counselling, hypoglycaemic episodes observed during fasting and post-meal blood glucose values fell significantly by 58.5% and 61.8%, respectively. The study also illustrates the importance of digital real-time tracking and medical care by experts for conditions such as diabetes. Moreover, it emphasized understanding the importance of tracking and having access to timely medical intervention and counselling, which is vital for people with diabetes and can have life-saving implications.