Glucose Monitoring is Powerful. This Gaming App is Helping

Like many 17-year-olds, Will Coleman was a bundle of vitality, enjoying aggressive soccer whereas juggling lessons as a highschool junior. So when he began feeling so drained that he wasn’t even in a position to assist his dad transfer furnishings while not having a break, he and his household knew one thing was improper.

Coleman’s father suspected Type 1 diabetes, primarily based on his son’s signs and a household historical past of the illness. A physician confirmed the suspicion. Coleman’s blood sugar was so low that he was in danger for severe organ injury. He was instantly admitted to the pediatric intensive care unit at UMass Memorial Medical Center in Worcester, about 40 miles west of Boston.

“I remember he was like ‘I feel like I’m half a second late to everything,’” stated Leanne Chukoskie, Coleman’s mom and an affiliate professor at Northeastern University with a joint appointment within the departments of artwork and design and bodily remedy, human motion and rehabilitation sciences. “It was this extra dampening on everything, and we didn’t know how bad it was.”

The household discovered that there have been not many assets for teenagers juggling life with a glucose monitor. When Coleman was launched from the ICU, he was given a Pink Panther coloring e book to elucidate Type 1 diabetes. The household utilized for a teen equipment from a juvenile diabetes group for extra assist and acquired the identical coloring e book.

Chukoskie was discussing this with considered one of her Ph.D. college students, Sundararaman Rengarajan, who’s in his fifth 12 months of pursuing his doctorate in human motion and rehab sciences. The pair has labored collectively for years, with most of Rengarajan’s work centered on why signs of autism manifest the way in which they do. 

“It came as a surprise when (Coleman) was diagnosed,” stated Rengarajan. “Type 1 means you need to take insulin shots and be mindful of what you eat, how much sleep you get, how much exercise you do, and understand how these affect your glucose variability. Even though Leanne was in the field, it was difficult for them to adapt.”

In the summer time of 2023, the 2 got here up with an thought. What in the event that they created an app the place younger adults can monitor their biometrics to assist predict their glucose ranges to allow them to higher handle the illness? 

Thus Sugar Slay was born, an app that makes use of well being information, machine studying and gamification to assist younger adults monitor and predict their glucose ranges. It began as a summer time mission, however Rengarajan now has plans to work on the app full-time when he finishes his diploma.

Type 1 diabetes is often identified in adolescence between the ages of 4 and seven or 10 and 14, based on the Mayo Clinic. At 17, Coleman was a bit past this; he was getting ready to depart house for school whereas studying to handle his well being. And his dad and mom had been attempting to let go whereas additionally ensuring their son was in a position to handle his well being.

“Even with an extreme level of trust from my parents, it was really rough,” stated Coleman, now 19 and a sophomore at Northeastern University learning physics and philosophy. 

Managing diabetes is a psychological and bodily problem, based on Kat Lucas, director of promoting at The Diabetes Link, a nonprofit that provides assist and assets for younger adults with the illness. This is particularly the case for younger adults like Coleman who’re attempting to come back into their very own whereas additionally managing a severe well being concern.

“When you consider the transitional stage of life young adults are in and the complexity of managing a very nuanced disease, it can often lead to gaps in care,” Lucas stated. “They may receive the very best clinical advice on paper, but what happens when they feel frustrated by a well-meaning parent who is blowing up their phone about that stubborn high blood sugar? Navigating these challenges is paramount to positive health outcomes, yet they’re rarely discussed in the clinical setting.”

Rengarajan and Chukoskie hoped to assist bridge this hole with Sugar Slay. Once they realized the app had potential, they relied on Northeastern’s Center for Research Innovation and the Bouve College of Health Sciences’ entrepreneurship program. They acquired $50,000 from CRI’s Spark Fund, which helps deliver concepts to life, and took part in I-Corps Site, a National Science Foundation program that trains college students and researchers in enterprise to allow them to deliver their prototypes to market. They additionally acquired $36,000 from the state of Massachusetts within the type of the Acorn Innovation Grant and an invite to current at MALSI Day, the state’s premier life sciences innovation occasion.

The staff additionally collaborated with WHOOP, a Boston-based health tracker, so folks can use their information from their WHOOP band on the app. The app may sync with a person’s glucose monitor.

With this assist, Rengarajan created a “very basic prototype” of the app. Considering the audience, he determined to take a gamified method to encourage engagement by means of “missions” assigned to customers, the place they’ll win badges in the event that they monitor their information for a sure variety of days. Users have to enter their meals and their temper whereas their different biometrics are available in from different trackers.

“It helps you build that healthy habit because you have to do this every day,” Rengarajan added. “These are gamified elements to attract youngsters (because) it’s a little harder to get into this lifestyle.”

Sugar Slay is at present within the testing part and is being utilized by members of the Northeastern group. The purpose is to ultimately develop membership to the general public. Regarajan and Chukoskie are additionally attempting to get a copyright for the app, which additionally has a companion app that lets younger adults share their information with a trusted grownup.

The hope is to assist younger adults like Coleman. Now practically three years out from his analysis, each he and his dad and mom have realized tips on how to handle his diabetes and belief him together with his personal care, although not with out some rising pains — just like the time Coleman’s father confirmed up at a good friend’s home as a result of he noticed his son’s glucose ranges had been low and panicked.

“(Will’s) a pretty responsible young person,” Chukoskie stated of her son. “It was an awakening. My husband and I are not helicopter parent types … (but) we were pumping the brakes and wanting to make sure he was safe. … I wish we’d had it early on instead of the Pink Panther.”