LANSIK helps diabetic and obese patients with blood sugar prediction AI
Decided to start a business rather of becoming a doctor… Developing AI for blood sugar prediction using food photos
Presentation of management measures such as eating habits and exercise methods
“Blood sugar data is the foundation for a healthy life”
Lansic helps manage blood sugar and obesity with a service called GlucoFit. We created a blood sugar prediction AI using technology that continuously measures blood sugar. Even if you don’t use a continuous blood sugar monitor, taking pictures of the food you eat will tell you when and how much your blood sugar level rises. CEO Yang said, “Thanks to AI technology, we can predict blood sugar levels with 95% accuracy just from food photos.” It is targeted at people with diabetes or pre-diabetes, as well as people who want to lose weight and become healthier. He said, “If you prevent your blood sugar from rising rapidly and manage your average blood sugar appropriately, you will lose about 3 to 4 kg of weight per month.”
● “If you manage your blood sugar, you will achieve an appropriate weight.”
It is known that the food you eat has 70-80% more influence on weight loss than exercise. If you lose more calories than you take in, you will lose weight. Blood sugar is a useful tool for checking whether the amount of food and carbohydrates you are eating is adequate.If you eat a lot of food, your average daily blood sugar level will be high. This leads to obesity and increases the level of glycated hemoglobin,an indicator for diagnosing diabetes.
People feel hungry when their blood sugar levels drop sharply.After eating, blood sugar reaches its highest level about 1 hour and 30 minutes later, and falls to its lowest level about 1 hour and 30 minutes
For diabetic patients, blood sugar management is a lifesaver in preventing diabetes complications such as stroke, myocardial infarction, and diabetic retinopathy.
With the advent of continuous blood sugar monitors, people can now visually check their blood sugar changes over the course of 24 hours.There is no need to prick your finger and extract blood to measure blood sugar.managing blood sugar becomes easier simply by knowing your blood sugar levels 24 hours a day.
● Actionable feedback, such as option food recommendations, is effective
lansik’s technology goes one step further. CEO Yang said, “Our core technology is AI-based personalized real-time predictive modeling.” 20 million blood sugar data and 300,000 diet data became the basis for the prediction model.
Even if users upload a photo of the food they eat to the app, AI predicts how much their blood sugar level will rise. More importantly, if the predicted blood sugar level is too high, it tells you how to overcome it with less suffering. for example, it is advised that if you reduce the amount of rice by one spoonful and eat one more piece of chicken breast, you can lower your blood sugar level by 10mL per dL while maintaining your daily caloric intake. CEO Yang said, “If you only measure your blood sugar with a continuous blood glucose meter, you’ll think, ‘Oh, my blood sugar is too high. “It’s easy to ask, ‘Why is this like this?’, but if you use the GlucoFit service, you can easily find out which of the foods you eat is the cause and how to control the proportion of your intake.”
continuous blood glucose monitors can usually be attached onc and used for about 14 days. though, the price of around 100,000 won per unit is burdensome to keep attaching. CEO Yang said, “Each individual has different sensitivity to blood sugar, so you have to wear it a few times based on the initial data, but after that, you can know your blood sugar changes just by looking at food photos through the GlucoFit service, so it is indeed economical.”
In addition, the GlucoFit service identifies the user’s exercise habits and sleep time and suggests measures for optimal blood sugar management. The idea is that you only need to walk a few steps at a time, and you shoudl secure at least a few hours of sleep. CEO Yang said, “In just three months, you can create new eating habits that can last a lifetime by incorporating foods that suit you well, foods that don’t, and optimal fasting times.” You may feel drowsy or tired after eating. It is highly likely that you have eating habits that cause your blood sugar levels to change too rapidly.
According to Lansic, 65% of the 15,000 cumulative users so far have seen improvements in blood sugar levels. I lost an average of 3 kg over 4 weeks. Many reviews say people have lost 3 to 4 kg of weight and are maintaining good health. CEO Yang said, “As interest in blood sugar management has increased, executives and employees of large companies such as Samsung Electronics, Kangbuk Samsung Hospital, and Hyundai Mobis have also used it.” Lansik currently uses continuous blood glucose monitors from foreign brands, and plans to link more and more continuous blood glucose monitors with wearable fitness devices.
● Silently prepare to start a business in pursuit of what you want to do
CEO Yang, who graduated from Dankook University School of Medicine, started thinking about starting a business while going on a medical volunteer trip to Haiti during his second year of pre-med. After seeing women who had to give birth to deformed babies due to lack of even basic nutritional supplements, I wanted to find a way to help more people who might not come to the clinic. I went to the military right after graduating from medical school. He said, “I thought a lot about starting a business while I was in the military. Starting a business is a tough path, so I needed a philosophy that would not shake me. “I thought a lot about what kind of life I wanted to live and why I wanted to live that way, and I came to the conclusion that starting a business as a means of doing so could help me think, ‘I lived a meaningful life.’” He also said that he symbolically assumed that he would help 1 billion people.
Information technology (IT),such as coding,was needed as a means of helping many people. He visited study groups and
looked for colleagues to start a business with while studying. The number of IT developers I met that way amounts to 150. They met developer Kwon Yun-hwan, a former member of Socar, and Jeong Seok-hwan, who has experience creating more than 20 web and app services, and founded Lansic in June 2022.
![“On average, lose 3kg per month… “If you just manage your blood sugar, the weight will come off on its own.”[허진석의 톡톡 스타트업]](https://dimg.donga.com/wps/NEWS/IMAGE/2024/12/07/130589939.1.jpg "“On average, lose 3kg per month… “If you just manage your blood sugar, the weight will come off on its own.”[허진석의 톡톡 스타트업]")
At first, it was a diet and obesity management program coached by the doctor himself. Then, I came across research results from Israel’s Weizmann Institute that showed that blood sugar response due to food intake varies from person to person. Based on this scientific evidence,GlucoFit has focused on personalized health management solutions by combining continuous blood glucose monitors and AI technology. In the beginning, the fact that I and my colleagues had first-hand experience and saw the effects was a big driving force. The mother of co-founder and developer Jeong Seok-hwan improved her high blood pressure and diabetes to normal levels after using Glucofit. It gave greater confidence to the team members.Lansic is growing its services in connection with fitness center programs and insurance products. We also plan to link it with health checkup data, heart rate, and body composition data. Competitive services have emerged, but they do not have blood sugar prediction algorithms or actionable feedback.
CEO Yang said, “currently, there are 6 million diabetic patients and 14 million people with pre-diabetes in Korea. “First of all, we plan to help them and expand into the global market.” The GlucoFit service may be a service that will create a model of correct eating habits that mankind has never thought of before. Through data on how harmful it is to eat until you are full, and how appropriate eating habits can improve your body’s condition.
How dose GlucoFit utilize AI technology to assist individuals in managing their blood sugar levels?
Interview Transcript: Time.news Exclusive Interview with CEO Yang Hyuk-yong of Lansik
Time.news Editor: Good afternoon, Mr. Yang. Thank you for joining us today to share insights into yoru innovative service, GlucoFit, and its impact on managing blood sugar levels for individuals with diabetes and those seeking to lose weight.
CEO Yang Hyuk-yong: Thank you for having me! I’m excited to discuss how AI can revolutionize blood sugar management.
editor: Let’s start with the core of your service. Can you explain how GlucoFit uses AI to help predict blood sugar levels from food photos?
CEO Yang: absolutely! Our GlucoFit service leverages advanced AI technology that analyzes food images uploaded by users. Based on patterns from 20 million blood sugar data points and 300,000 diet data records, our AI can predict blood sugar responses with an accuracy of 95%. This means even if someone doesn’t use a continuous glucose monitor, they can still receive critical information about how their food choices affect their blood sugar levels.
Editor: That’s remarkable! You mentioned that managing blood sugar levels could lead to weight loss. Can you elaborate on that?
CEO Yang: Certainly! Research indicates that food intake has a larger impact on weight loss—70-80%—compared to exercise alone. By effectively managing blood sugar levels, users can prevent rapid spikes and falls in their glucose, which can lead to hunger and overeating. On average, we see people lose 3 to 4 kg per month when they manage their blood sugar appropriately, which is lasting compared to drastic dieting.
Editor: What about users who may not have access to continuous glucose monitors? How does your service accommodate them?
CEO Yang: That’s a grate question! While continuous glucose monitors are helpful, they can be costly and inconvenient. GlucoFit steps in by utilizing the food photos to provide practical advice. Such as, we can instruct users to swap out a spoonful of rice for an additional portion of chicken to significantly lower potential blood sugar spikes—without compromising their caloric intake.This type of actionable feedback is what sets us apart.
Editor: It sounds like you’re trying to empower your users with knowledge about their diets. How does GlucoFit address lifestyle factors like exercise and sleep?
CEO Yang: Yes, exactly! The GlucoFit service assesses users’ exercise habits and sleep patterns to offer tailored recommendations for optimal blood sugar management. For instance, we encourage breaking up inactivity with light movement throughout the day and ensuring they get enough sleep. We believe small, consistent changes can foster lasting habits over time.
Editor: Impressive! With 65% of users reporting improvements in their blood sugar levels, what kind of feedback have you received from your user base?
CEO Yang: The response has been overwhelmingly positive. Users have often shared their satisfaction, noting weight loss and improved energy levels. Many have even changed their eating habits significantly within just a few months, which has long-term benefits for their health.
Editor: That’s encouraging to hear. Shifting gears a bit, can you tell us about your journey in starting Lansik? What inspired you to pivot from medicine to entrepreneurship?
CEO Yang: During my medical studies, I participated in a volunteer trip to Haiti, where I witnessed firsthand the dire consequences of inadequate nutrition. This experience ignited a passion in me to find scalable solutions that could reach and help more individuals beyond a clinical setting. I realized that technology, especially AI, could be a transformative tool in this field.
Editor: Your vision is certainly admirable. What do you see as the future of blood sugar management and how does Lansik fit into that?
CEO Yang: I believe the future lies in more personalized healthcare solutions that proactively manage health risks rather than reacting to them. At Lansik, we aim to integrate our GlucoFit service with various wearable diagnostics and health monitoring devices to create a comprehensive health management ecosystem. Our goal is to help users transform their health before they become patients.
Editor: Thank you, Mr. Yang. It’s inspiring to see how technology can make such a difference in people’s lives. We look forward to seeing Lansik’s continued evolution and the positive impacts of GlucoFit.
CEO Yang: Thank you! I’m excited about the future and the potential to help so many more individuals live healthier lives.
Editor: It was a pleasure speaking with you today!
CEO yang: Likewise! Thank you for the possibility.