Concerned about the increase in dialysis cases, Polines students create the application “Glucosaw” – General Directorate of Vocational Education

Semarang, Director General of Vocational Studies – The high number of diabetes cases led a team of Semarang State Polytechnic (Polines) students to innovate to develop the “Glucosaw” application to help people monitor their sugar intake.

The development of the Glucosaw application is a good use of the Student Creativity Program for Creative Enterprises (PKM-KC). This application is designed to provide warnings and information regarding the sugar content of packaged products, especially for people suffering from diabetes.

Muhammad Haidar Alfathin, as the innovator of the Glukosaw application, said that the inspiration to develop this application came from the recent dialysis trend among young people.

“This move worries me. “Besides, many friends around me consume sweet drinks without knowing what sugar is in those drinks,” said Muhammad Haidar.

After discussions with the supervisor, Muhammad Haidar continued, he and his team developed the application.

“After consulting with our management, Mr. Mardiyanto and Mr. Afandi, we created an application that educates consumers about the sugar content of the products they want to eat,” he said.

Glucosaw’s own team consists of Muhammad Haidar AF, Achmad Muchibin, Zulfa Rosya NR, Aufaa Hamidah, and Fasya Namila T.

This application development uses technology Optical Character Recognition (OCR) that automatically reads and displays sugar content information in text and voice format simply by taking a picture of the nutrition label on food or beverage packaging products.

This feature classifies the sugar content into four levels, indicated by the letters A to D. Category A indicates that the product is safe to eat as it contains less than 0.5 grams of sugar. Category B means that the product contains between 0.5 and 6 grams of sugar, category C between 6 and 12 grams, and category D indicates that the product contains more than 12 grams of sugar, which should not be consumed. be eaten more.

This sugar label has been modified according to the recommendations of the WHO and the Ministry of Health (Kemenkes), as well as the regulations BPOM No. 1 of 2022 and BPOM No. 26 of 2021. On the other hand, the Ministry of Health recommends that sugar daily consumption should not exceed 50 grams per day, or the equivalent of four tablespoons.

In addition to displaying scan results, the application also provides additional alerts through vibration and sound. When the sugar content is classified with the letters C or D, the application will give a warning in the form of a vibration and a sound warning through the Text-to-Speech feature. This feature uses AI technology to accurately analyze information and express it in a language that is easy to understand.

This vibration and sound feature is designed to provide users with quick and intuitive reminders of high sugar levels to help visually impaired users.

Beneficial

Semarang State Polytechnic Polyclinic Doctor, Rahmi Handayani, said that this application is very useful for people who are still confused about reading nutritional value labels. According to him, the results presented are also relevant and easy to understand.

“This application is very helpful. “In addition, many packaged foods or drinks have a high sugar content, so this is a good step to make it easier for people to maintain their daily sugar intake,” said Rahmi Handayani.

At the same time, Mardiyono, as a supervisor, hopes that this application will make it easier for users, especially for people suffering from diabetes, to monitor their level of their daily sugar.

“We believe that technology can be an effective tool in supporting public health,” said Mardiyono.

In addition, this application is also expected to increase public awareness to maintain daily sugar intake patterns by consuming healthier products (sugar content that is safe for health). This application also encourages beverage manufacturers to contribute to balanced sugar maintenance through healthier products.

“This innovation is a form of Polines students’ commitment to support public health through the use of renewable technology,” said Mardiyono. (Polines/Nan/Cceep)