Human Meat Robots at the Gym & on Mars, Plus: Protein Cubits & Glass Sand

💉 CGMs: Silicon Valley’s new status symbol

For years, the continuous glucose monitor (CGM) was strictly for people with diabetes, a necessity rather than a piece of aspirational wellness tech. Now these little plastic discs seem to be popping out of the arms of everyone at my upscale San Francisco gym, a sign of a growing popular obsession with the quantified self, and investors’ thirst to capitalize on the lucrative consumer wellness space. Science News’s Sujata Gupta reports on how the popularity of blood-sugar tracking among non-diabetics is on the rise. The evidence to back the benefits is still playing catch-up.

🍭 MAHA sweetens the pot

What are CGMs? These devices contain a small sensor that is inserted just under the skin on the arm or abdomen, to measure glucose levels in the fluid in spaces between cells. The sensor collects data on blood sugar levels and wirelessly transmits it to a tracking app. Maintaining a blood sugar level between 70 and 140 milligrams per deciliter is generally considered ideal for a non-fasting individual.