World’s first diabetes app will be able to check glucose levels without drawing drop of blood

The world’s first health app could monitor people’s glucose levels without breaking the skin – a development which has been described as the “holy grail” in diabetes care.

The Epic app could also help people find out if they could develop diabetes and need to make lifestyle changes to avoid it becoming a reality.

Users will be able to find out how different food types affect their body; for example, what a can of coke will do to their sugar levels or heart rate or how a plate of broccoli lowers their blood pressure.

It will also be possible to see how exercise or supplements affect vital statistics. Users will only have to place one fingertip over the camera lens of their smartphone, the London-based firm has stated.

A series of close-up images are taken which accurately show information about the user’s blood flow. These are then sent to the cloud for analysis and can provide feedback on all kinds of vital information – from heart rate to temperature to blood pressure.

It can also tell people about their respiration and blood oxygen saturation. SMBG (self-monitored blood glucose) is recommended for all people with diabetes and the clinical benefits are widely accepted.

Developers say the app will be available to download – free of charge – on Android smartphone devices and iOS at the end of this year. How does the app work? Users have to place one fingertip over the camera lens of their smartphone, the London-based firm says.