The value of recognizing trends
Eating healthy and exercising are great general guiding principles for good health. But all bodies are different. Sometimes we need personal guidance to hit our goals. This is where monitoring your health data can be a game-changer. When you pay attention to your health data regularly, you might notice trends. Trends show if something is going up, going down or staying the same over time. Trends can help you see how your actions affect your health.
Why track your health data?
What you track depends on your health goals. If you want to manage your weight, you’ll track your weigh-ins. You might also log your food, track your workouts or monitor your sleep each night.
If you have more than one health goal, like managing diabetes and keeping a healthy weight, you may notice trends and patterns across different metrics. These trends may lend valuable insights about how different activities can impact your health. You can track things like steps, workouts and heart rate and compare them to your health data.
Our bodies are made up of complex systems that rely on each other to run smoothly. It can be easy to miss how we feel or what might be causing symptoms when we’re not tracking our symptoms. For example, stress can impact your blood pressure in real time. When you check your blood pressure often, note what you were doing before. Maybe after certain meetings or activities, your blood pressure is higher. Think about what you can do to push your blood pressure in the other direction.
When tracking your blood sugar, you can indicate how you are feeling as you take the reading. You might find that your afternoon energy slump is linked to a dip in blood sugar. A small, healthy snack might keep your blood sugar and energy stable. Over time, you might see that your readings improve after a new lifestyle change.
How to find trends
You need certain tools to monitor different parts of your health. If you’re enrolled in any of our condition management programs, you may have received some of these tools at no cost to you. If you’d like to enroll in one of these programs, check your eligibility here.
- Blood pressure monitor: Blood pressure monitors check your blood pressure using an inflatable arm band. Here’s how to get in the habit of checking your blood pressure regularly.
- Blood glucose/sugar meter: Measures your blood sugar using a test strip and a drop of your blood. When you get in the habit of checking your blood sugar, you can see how meals and activities impact your readings.
- Continuous glucose monitor: Monitors send you blood sugar readings throughout the day. You can see how things like meals and exercise directly influence your blood sugar in real time.
- Weight scale: Measure how much you weigh. While this tool may not offer hour-by-hour insights, you can see how your weight changes over time.
Once you’ve gathered data, you can compare different metrics side by side. You might see trends in your blood sugar around certain days of the week. Or you might notice that during a week you exercised more, you lost more weight. Using data like this can help you make more informed lifestyle choices.
Using your health summary report
If you are in one of our programs, you can view and share your health summary report (HSR). Your HSR includes averages, trends and summaries of your readings over the last 30 and 90 days. Your care provider can use this information to create a more personalized care plan for you. You can share this data with your care team, family and friends. Find out how to view and share your HSR here. If you want to share your HSR with your care provider, make sure you come prepared to ask questions about your data. Share your concerns and observations. If your provider gives you recommendations, keep tracking your health data for trends that might change as a result.
Your unique health data can be a window into the inner workings of your complex body. Noticing trends can help you make healthier choices for your own health journey. Talk to your care provider or coach about how to look for trends in your health data today.
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This content is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition.