A new bizarre trend glorifying tracking sugar (glucose) levels has taken the health and nutrition market by storm, but how ethical are these products and why are people buying into them?
For diabetics, tracking their glucose level is not a choice, but a necessity. In the past, diabetics were limited to inconvenient frequent finger prick tests to asses their glucose levels. Thanks to modern technology, this has transcended to diabetics having an implant in their arm which connects to their phone and sends notifications about their glucose level. Meanwhile, biotech companies such as powerhouses Zoe, and Signos were rubbing their hands together eyeing up their next big earner.
And they were in luck, as Gen Z’s incessant need to know every detail about their body played perfectly into the hands of biotech companies. To bolster their impact, they reeled in influencers, money moguls, and investors worldwide to make glucose tracking a multi-million dollar trend.
The sucess of the glucose monitoring business is clear in the data. Since Zoe’s launch in April 2022, 130,000 people have subscribed to the service, with as many as 250,000 on the waiting list at one time. These thousands of subscribers are happily physically branding themselves with the bright yellow Zoe implant which is anything but subtle.
Its cult-like subscriber base has taken to boast the health benefits, “Zoe made me a better mum,” one user claimed, “It is an investment in my long-term health,” another stated.
The buzz behind the health trend once outweighed expert opinions, but things are changing as the influencer brand deals die down, and the constant ad hysteria lulls. Doctors’ and health experts’ words of caution are starting to spike concerns, and the truth about this trend is seeping through the internet.
Debunking the personalized nutrition movement, Deb Cohen, a health correspondent from the BBC spoke in an interview with UnHerd: “Healthy adults have a constant up and down in glucose levels, it is constantly imbalanced.” Cohen discussed rigorous scientific clinical trials that have proven, for healthy non-diabetics, one meal can impact someone’s glucose levels differently from one week to the next.
This conclusion undermines the biotech companies’ selling point that you can confidently identify which food impacts you and alter your diet around the data they collect and then present to the customer in a “personalized precision plan” for as much as 299 pounds (380 dollars).
Other health and nutrition critics have said they would be “surprised” if the recommended foods in the Zoe app were similar or identical for every user.
One of the issues that doctors have pointed out is that the technology is causing health anxiety as non-diabetics become obsessed with the normal highs and lows of their glucose levels. Many have been reported turning their concerns into visits to their doctors over the data provided by their arm censor.
Doctors have also raised concerns over people cutting foods from their diet that are not harmful to them, basing their decision on the biotech companies’ suggestions. Additionally, people who are struggling with an eating disorder or have done so in the past could be negatively impacted by the health data provided by the biotech businesses.
You can see where the health anxiety is coming from especially when the data is paired with statements like this from Zoe’s website: “Your body needs to keep a tight rein on glucose. If the balance tips in either direction, it can be bad news.”