Tracking blood sugar with your Apple Watch just got way easier

In the U.s., there are over 37 million Americans who have diabetes, which is around 11% of the population. Globally, there are about 422 million people who are diabetic. The most common form is Type 2, which represents about 90% to 95% of all diabetes cases. As you can imagine, monitoring blood sugar levels is an important task for many people.

A company called Dexcom manufactures, produces, and distributes continuous glucose monitoring systems (CGM) that help those who need to manage diabetes. It’s one of the more prominent and popular brands for CGMs, and it’s making it even easier to monitor your blood sugar levels with an Apple Watch even when your iPhone isn’t nearby.

That’s because the Dexcom G7 can now send your real-time blood sugar levels to your Apple Watch, even without your iPhone. This Direct to Apple Watch feature is possible thanks to the dedicated Bluetooth connection on the Dexcom G7 CGM System, which will now send glucose information, as well as personalized alerts, directly to the user’s Apple Watch.

This new feature will let the user “go for a run, enjoy a dinner out, and feel confident leaving their iPhone behind,” according to the Dexcom press release:

“At Dexcom, our users are at the heart of everything we do. Direct to Apple Watch has been one of our most requested features and we’re thrilled to roll it out to Dexcom G7 users in the U.S. and around the world,” said Jake Leach, executive vice president and chief operating officer at Dexcom. “We’ve long believed that people with diabetes should be able to view their CGM data where and how they choose. Direct to Apple Watch is a testament to that, allowing people with diabetes flexibility and choice in how they manage their health.”

Previously, the Dexcom G7 had a companion Apple Watch app with a watch face complication. However, the problem with this app complication was that it had a three-hour delay on synced data showing up. With Direct to Apple Watch, you will now get real-time readings and alerts right on the Apple Watch itself.

Dexcom G7 users will still need an iPhone, however, to set it up with their Apple Watch, and the iOS Health app is still a requirement in order to view the blood glucose data and other metrics captured with the Apple Watch.

To get the Direct to Apple Watch feature on your Dexcom G7, you have to be in the U.S., U.K., and Ireland. More markets will be getting the feature later this month. Direct to Apple Watch requires Dexcom G7 app version 2.1, an Apple Watch Series 6 or later with watchOS 10 or later, and an iPhone with iOS 17 or later.