How to improve your A1C with Dexcom G7

Dexcom G7 user checking Clarity reports on her smart phone.

The CGM Blog

How to improve your A1C with Dexcom G7

Find out more about how the Dexcom G7 CGM System can help you lower A1C and spend more time in range as part of your diabetes management plan.

Updated October 2025

Working towards your diabetes management goals, such as lowering or maintaining your A1C, can help you feel your best more often while reducing the risks of complications. Measuring your A1C is one way your doctor monitors your blood sugar, or glucose, to understand how your diabetes management plan is working. People living with type 1 diabetes (T1D)or type 2 diabetes (T2D) can use diabetes technology, like a continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) system, to keep an eye on their glucose at home. Learning more about what might affect your A1C and how technology like CGM systems help support your diabetes management can empower you to reach your target A1C.

What is A1C?

An A1C test, also called an HbA1C test, is a blood test that measures your average blood sugar levels over the previous three months.¹ It shows how much glucose has built up in your red blood cells over their three-month lifespan.^2,3

Diabetes Canada generally recommends that most adults living with diabetes aim for an A1C at or below 7.0%. You and your doctor will determine your personal ideal glucose range. Keeping your A1C at the recommended level decreases the risk of diabetes complications such as nerve damage and issues with the heart.⁴

A1C vs. time in range (TIR)

Getting an A1C test every three months is the clinical standard for assessing glucose control. However, an A1C test may not provide the most detailed picture of your glucose management or help you understand your glucose patterns on a day-to-day basis. This is because A1C is a snapshot that can only show your average glucose levels over a longer period of time. It can’t show you how often and how long you experience highs and lows.

Tracking your time in range (TIR) with a CGM system can give you a better idea of what’s happening with your glucose. TIR tells you how much time you spend in your ideal glucose range over a specified period. It can also reveal how much time you spend experiencing HYPOglycemia, low blood sugar, or HYPERglycemia, high blood sugar. Reviewing your TIR can help you determine which choices and habits help you stay in your ideal range more often.

Diabetes Canada generally recommends a target glucose range between 3.9 mmol/L and 10.0 mmol/L.⁴ Diabetes Canada also suggests that individuals living with diabetes aim to spend 70% of their time within their target glucose range, which is roughly equivalent to a 7.0% A1C.⁴ Increasing TIR can help you lower your A1C, as every 10% increase in TIR can create a 0.5 % reduction in A1C.^4,5It’s important to work with your doctor to determine personalized goals for your ideal glucose range.

Four ways the Dexcom G7 CGM System can help you lower your A1C

There are many different factors that can influence your glucose levels, such as sleep, stress, hormonal changes, and even the weather. Using a CGM system like the Dexcom G7 Continuous Glucose Monitoring (CGM) System can give you more insight into what’s affecting your glucose.

Those who previously used a blood glucose meter (BGM) to check their glucose levels can improve their A1C and spend more time in range by switching to CGM.7,8 Dexcom G7 has been clinically proven to increase TIR, reduce A1C, and decrease hypoglycemia.^9-14 In addition to the healthy habits that can help you lower your A1C, here are just a few of the ways Dexcom G7 can help you reach your glucose management goals.

1. Use Dexcom G7 to be proactive about glucose management

Studies show that when people have real-time glucose tracking with CGM, they are more likely to make effective glucose management decisions.9-14 Dexcom G7 can help you see where your glucose levels have been and where they’re going so you can take proactive action to manage them.

With Dexcom G7, you can see glucose readings at your fingertips on your compatible smart device or receiver.^† An easy-to-understand glucose graph and colourful arrows show you whether your glucose is trending up or down and how quickly it’s changing.

In addition to real-time glucose tracking, Dexcom G7 can provide alerts to notify you about high glucose, help you catch hypoglycemia when you don’t know you’re going low, and reduce the risk of experiencing lows while you’re asleep. Dexcom G7 alerts include:

The predictive Urgent Low Soon Alert that can let you know up to 20 minutes before a serious low below 3.1 mmol/L.
The Urgent Low Alert that can notify you the moment you drop below 3.1 mmol/L.
Customizable alerts for high glucose to let you know when you go above your ideal range.

Dexcom G7 also integrates with leading insulin pumps, enabling automated insulin delivery (AID) based on your glucose readings so you don’t have to calculate routine insulin doses around meals or wake up to give yourself insulin in the middle of the night. ^15-18 Diabetes Canada recommends AID should be used for all individuals living with T1D to lower A1C, increase TIR, reduce hypoglycemia, and improve quality of life.¹⁹

2. See how healthy choices impact your diabetes management

Dexcom G7 makes it easy to see how habits like eating diabetes-friendly meals and taking time for physical activity affect your glucose and contribute to your A1C goals. You can easily note your meals and activities alongside your glucose readings in the Dexcom G7 app. You can also record your insulin or medication doses. In addition to the logging features already available inside the app, you can connect Dexcom G7 to your favourite health apps. Having all of your diabetes management data in one place gives you and your doctor a more complete picture of which habits support your overall health and well-being.

3. Seamlessly share glucose insights with your diabetes care team

You and your diabetes care team can use your glucose readings to spot patterns that reveal opportunities to improve your diabetes care plan. Dexcom Clarity reports provide an in-depth view into past glucose readings over days, weeks, months, and even years. This helps you and your doctor get a better understanding of how your diabetes management plan is working over time. With greater insight into your glucose patterns, you can make informed decisions about your diabetes self-care routines and habits to support your A1C goals. You can easily pull up Dexcom Clarity insights inside your Dexcom G7 app when you’re talking with your doctor during your regular check-ups.

4. Track your progress and celebrate success

Managing diabetes can be challenging, but diabetes technology can support the hard work you’ve been doing and help keep you motivated. The Dexcom G7 app allows you to view metrics, including your TIR and average glucose, at a glance so you can see how you’re doing and celebrate every win—no matter how small.

The Overview report in Dexcom Clarity lets you check your Best Glucose Day—the day in your selected time frame when you spent the most time in your target glucose range. Every Best Glucose Day is an opportunity to congratulate yourself!

Explore how Dexcom G7 fits into your diabetes management plan

Managing your glucose to achieve your A1C goals is a 24/7 job that can feel overwhelming. Dexcom G7 makes it a little easier to see what’s going on with your glucose. With glucose readings in the palm of your hand, you can gain extra confidence and peace of mind knowing you can keep an eye on your levels and take action when they change.

See how Dexcom G7 works

* Fingersticks required for diabetes treatment decisions if symptoms or expectations do not match readings.
† For a list of compatible smart devices, please visit dexcom.com/compatibility.

1 All About Your A1C. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Reviewed September 30, 2022. Accessed December 13, 2023. https://www.cdc.gov/diabetes/managing/managing-blood-sugar/a1c.html
2 Hantzidiamantis PJ, et. al. Physiology, Glucose. StatPearls Publishing. Updated September 20, 2021. Accessed December 13, 2023. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK545201/
3 Eyth E, et al. Hemoglobin A1C. StatPearls Publishing. Updated March 13, 2023. Accessed December 13, 2023. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK549816/
4 Imran AS, et. al. Can J Diabetes. 2018:42(S42–S46).
5 Cheng AYY, et al. Can J Diabetes. 2021;45(7):580-587.
6 Brown A. 42 Factors That Affect Blood Glucose?! A Surprising Update. diaTribe Foundation. Updated September 29, 2022. Accessed December 19, 2023. https://diatribe.org/42-factors-affect-blood-glucose-surprising-update
7 Lind N, et al. Diabetes Care. 2024;47(5):881-889.
8 Šoupal J, et al. Diabetes Care. 2020;43:37-43.
9 Beck RW, et al. JAMA. 2017;317(4):371-378.
10 Beck RW, et al. Ann Intern Med. 2017;167(6):365-374.
11 Martens T, et al. JAMA. 2021;325(22):2262-2272.
12 Laffel LM, et al. JAMA. 2020;323(23):2388-2396.
13 Welsh JB, et al. J Diabetes Sci Technol. Published online June 13, 2022.
14 Heinemann L, et al. Lancet. 2018;391(10128):1367-1377.
15 Brown SA, et al. N Engl J Med. 2019;381(18):1707-1717.
16 Brown SA et al. Diabetes Care. 2021;44(7):1630-1640.
17 Russell SJ, et al. N Engl J Med. 2022;387(13):1161-1172.
18 Sherr JL, et al. Diabetes Care. 2022;45(8):1907-1910.
19 Halperin IJ, et al. Can J Diabetes. 2025;49(1):5-18.

A1C vs. time in range (TIR)

Four ways the Dexcom G7 CGM System can help you lower your A1C

Explore how Dexcom G7 fits into your diabetes management plan

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