Paslay, Who Has Type 1 Diabetes, Can’t Imagine Life Without Continuous Glucose Monitoring
San Diego, CA – Dexcom, Inc., (NASDAQ:DXCM), a leader in continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) for patients with diabetes, announced it has partnered with Platinum-selling country music singer-songwriter Eric Paslay, who has Type 1 Diabetes, to raise awareness of the benefits of CGM for people living with the disease. Paslay will work with Dexcom to share his personal experience with diabetes and how proper glucose management has allowed him to live life to the fullest without limitations.
To kick off the partnership, Paslay will attend the Children with Diabetes Friends for Life® international conference on July 6 in Orlando, Florida, where he’ll speak with families and children impacted by the disease. He will also perform a special concert for all the attendees during the event.
Education on diabetes management is crucial for 29.1 million Americans living with the condition day-to-day, including1.25 million diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes.1 The growth of continuous glucose monitoring systems, like the Dexcom G5® Mobile CGM System, has helped diabetes patients better understand valuable information about their glucose levels and trends, a key aspect to managing the disease and staying healthy.
“When I’m on the road with a crazy schedule, it’s very hard to keep a regular routine, let alone watch what I’m eating and stay on top of my blood glucose levels,” said Paslay. “What’s really amazing about the Dexcom CGM is that I’m no longer surprised while I’m on stage—I can see my levels go up and down and take action. My tour manager also monitors my levels with the Follow app and tells me in my earpiece if they are going high or low, so I can take steps to get back in check. As a musician and an individual living with Diabetes, I can’t say enough good things about the impact CGM has made on my personal and professional life.”
Paslay was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes at the age of 10 after his grandmother noticed him drinking too many fluids and rushed him to the hospital, which led to a quick diagnosis of Type 1 Diabetes. Now, Paslay is passionate about helping others with diabetes through his music and by sharing what he’s learned about managing the disease. In partnering with Dexcom, he hopes to spread awareness of continuous glucose monitoring and empower those impacted by diabetes to get educated about their options and make sure they are taking care of themselves.
“I want to share my story in hopes that I can educate other people with diabetes, especially young people, that they can follow their dreams by taking good care of themselves and that proper diabetes management is the key,” Paslay added. “People need to know that there are advanced tools like CGM available to help with the successful management of this disease.”
“We are so inspired by Eric’s story and are excited to collaborate with him to empower others living with diabetes,” stated Kevin Sayer, Chief Executive Officer of Dexcom. “As someone who has personally benefitted from CGM, Eric is a perfect role model to help others learn about their options for diabetes management. We believe his story will help inspire those who struggle with this disease on a daily basis to be more empowered to take control of their diabetes.”
Continuous glucose monitoring is considered the most significant breakthrough in diabetes management in the past 40 years.2 The traditional standard-of-care for glucose (blood sugar) monitoring has been a finger stick meter. CGM augments the use of glucose meters for the management of diabetes. With the recent introduction of the Dexcom G5 Mobile CGM System, people with diabetes can now view their glucose information on their iOS-enabled devices for real-time diabetes management. CGM is important because, in addition to providing the glucose level, it provides the direction and rate of glucose change with the push of a button and alerts users when glucose is too low or too high.
Diabetes affects 10% of the American population and is the 7th leading cause of death in the United States.2 With diabetes, the body cannot produce or use the hormone insulin effectively, causing a buildup of glucose, or sugar, in the blood. It is estimated that approximately 86 million Americans over the age of 20 are at risk for developing diabetes (primarily Type 2), largely due to obesity, physical inactivity and poor diet.2 People with diabetes who take insulin must monitor their blood glucose levels frequently. Uncontrolled glucose can cause health complications and even death.3,4