People with
diabetes have to prick their fingers multiple times a day to monitor their blood sugar levels, but researchers report that someday patients may be able to do that simply by checking their breath.
A hand-held device would measure levels of the chemical acetone in someone’s breath. Acetone levels rise when blood sugar levels rise, and acetone is responsible for the sweet, fruity smell on the breath of people with diabetes who have high blood sugar levels.
What hasn’t yet been proven is whether or not blood sugar levels reliably rise and fall with acetone levels, according to the study’s lead researcher, Ronny Priefer, a professor of medicinal chemistry at Western New England University in Springfield, Mass.
"If we can successfully show that there is a linear correlation between acetone levels and blood glucose [sugar] levels, the ease of which an individual with diabetes can monitor their disease state should be dramatically simplified," Priefer said.
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Diabetes Type 1 - Positive 