Apple Inc., seeking to make further inroads in health care, tested an app this year to help people with prediabetes manage their food intake and make lifestyle changes, according to people with knowledge of the matter. The company tested the service on select employees earlier this year, part of its broader push into blood-sugar features, according to the people, who asked not to be identified because the work is secret. Though Apple doesn’t have plans to release the app, the company may eventually integrate the technology into future health products, including a noninvasive glucose tracker that it’s been developing for more than a decade.
The employees involved in the test needed to validate that they were prediabetic with a blood test. That means they don’t currently have diabetes but may be at risk of developing the Type 2 version of the disease. As part of the test, they actively monitored their blood sugar via various devices available on the market and then logged glucose-level changes in response to food intake.
The idea behind the system is to show consumers how certain foods can affect blood sugar — with the hope of inspiring changes that could ward off diabetes. For instance, if users logged that they ate pasta for lunch and that their blood sugar spiked, they could be told to stop eating the pasta or switch to protein.
The study was intended to explore the possible uses for blood-sugar data and what tools the company could potentially create for consumers. For now, though, the app test has been paused to let Apple focus on other health features. A company spokesperson declined to comment.
Makers of devices that treat conditions associated with diabetes slid after the report was published Friday, though they soon rebounded. Insulet Corp., which makes insulin pumps, fell as much as 4.7%. Glucose monitor maker Dexcom Inc. dropped as much as 5.3% before bouncing back, and Tandem Diabetes Care Inc. slid as much as 3.4%. Apple, meanwhile, rose about 1% to $232.45.
The work indicates that glucose tracking and food logging could be two important areas of expansion for Apple in the future. The company’s current health app lacks features for logging meals, a contrast with rival services. The research could also lead to Apple integrating third-party glucose tracking more deeply into its offerings.
The research wasn’t directly tied to Apple’s longstanding effort to build a no-prick glucose monitor, but it could ultimately help inform how the company handles that project. The noninvasive checker is one of Apple’s most ambitious health initiatives. The idea is to analyze a person’s blood without pricking the skin — a potentially groundbreaking advance in the fight against diabetes.
Apple often uses employee studies to get health features ready for public launches. It took a similar tack with its hearing aid and sleep apnea detection features for AirPods and the Apple Watch. The Cupertino, California-based company has multiple labs on its campus for testing health features.
The glucose studies were highly secretive — even compared with Apple’s previous projects — and employees required specific vetting from managers before they could partake in the program. Several medical and nondisclosure agreements were also required to participate.
Today, glucose-testing systems typically require a blood sample, often through a finger prick. There also are small shoulder-worn patches from Abbott Laboratories and Dexcom that are less cumbersome — though they still require insertion into the skin.
About 15 years ago, Apple set out to create something less invasive. The project — dubbed E5 — was so under-the-radar at the start that Apple created a subsidiary dubbed Avolonte Health LLC to operate it. That unit was eventually moved to Apple’s hardware technologies group and is now run by a deputy to the company’s head of silicon chips.
Last year, Bloomberg News reported that Apple had made headway on the project and believed it was finally on track to eventually commercialize the technology. But an actual product is still years away. Before the company can shrink down the sensor enough to fit in a smartwatch, it is working on an iPhone-sized prototype. And even with that format, Apple has run into challenges with miniaturization and overheating.
The system uses lasers to shoot light into the skin and determine how much glucose is in the blood. Though Apple hopes to eventually provide specific blood-sugar readings, the initial version will likely be designed to just notify users if they may be prediabetic.
Apple is taking a similar strategy with new sleep apnea notifications, which can tell smartwatch wearers if they may have the condition. An upcoming hypertension detection feature will work in much the same way.
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