Anonymous sources told Bloomberg this week that Apple has taken a significant step toward its goal of introducing a continuous, noninvasive blood glucose monitor. Apple’s highly secretive Exploratory Design Group (known internally as XDG) has been working on the tech for years, but progress has been slower than the company would like.
Previously, Apple’s version of a noninvasive blood glucose monitor was large enough to need to sit atop a table. The company has since managed to shrink the system to the size of an iPhone. A device of this size can be strapped to a person’s bicep to monitor their blood sugar continuously, but Apple isn’t gunning for a bicep wearable—it specifically wants to integrate the technology into the Apple Watch.
In 2010, founder Steve Jobs directed Apple to buy noninvasive blood glucose monitoring startup RareLight to bring its technology to mobile devices. RareLight’s developments were kept separate from Apple’s through project codenames and distinct employee badges, which is why the public hasn’t known to look for Apple-integrated glucose monitoring tech until recently. In the meantime, Apple has gradually added health tech to the Watch, including a pulse oximeter, an electrocardiogram (ECG), and heart rate monitoring.
(Image: Raagesh C/Unsplash)
Most continuous glucose monitors (CGMs) rely on a tiny sensor inserted into the skin of a person’s arm or abdomen. This pinprick-style sensor is coated in glucose-sensing enzymes, which detect “blood sugar” in the fluid between blood cells. The sensor sends its findings to a transmitter that sits above the skin, which sends data to a receiver or the person’s smartphone. Although some people find CGMs more convenient than test strips (which require regular finger pricks), they’re expensive, thanks to the frequent sensor and transmitter replacements. CGMs cost anywhere from $100 to $1,000.
If Apple integrates a CGM into the Watch, it could revolutionize diabetes care. Apple Watches start at $249; even if Apple were to make the CGM exclusive to its most expensive Ultra model ($799), its monitor wouldn’t require pinpricks or regular replacements. There are also the apparent bonuses of working alongside other elements of a person’s Apple ecosystem and facilitating tasks that have nothing to do with blood glucose checks. Sources for Bloomberg also say Apple’s tech would alert prediabetic Watch users, allowing them to make changes that could ultimately prevent adult-onset (Type 2) diabetes.
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