Insulin Resistance

August 26, 2007 by Max Peykar

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Insulin resistance can be termed as a pre-diabetic condition in which the chances of a person developing diabetes, and diseases of the heart, increases manifold. Awareness about insulin resistance and the motivation to make changes in one’s lifestyle can prevent the onset of diabetes, heart diseases and other health related problems.

The food that is consumed by a person is broken down into glucose. Glucose is a simple sugar, which is converted into energy by the cells in the body. However, this process requires a hormonal catalyst called insulin. Unfortunately, at times, the pancreas which makes insulin is unable to produce the optimal amount required by the body and the sugar is not converted into energy. This extra sugar starts increasing in the blood and the condition is set for diabetes.

Simple sugar or glucose provides the body with all its energy requirements. But insulin is needed for the conversion of glucose into energy. However, the entire process becomes defunct when adequate amount of insulin is not produced by the pancreas. There are times when the body is unable to use the insulin which has already been produced by the pancreas.

The main factor responsible for the way in which insulin either works or does not work in a person’s body is whether there is extra fat tissue in the person’s body. If a person is obese, then the extra fat which is present in his body develops a resistance to the activity of insulin upon the cells.

This condition can be reversed if the person maintains an exercise regime. As it has been proved that insulin resistance is hereditary and runs in the family, hence it can be inferred that genes are partly responsible for this condition. People with insulin resistance and high blood glucose usually put on weight near the waist.

Insulin resistance and pre-diabetes usually have no symptoms. It is possible for a person to suffer from these two conditions for years without noticing anything or any signs of diabetes. However, on several occasions, a severe form of insulin resistance manifests itself as dark patches on the nape of his neck, around the neck, elbows, knuckles, knees and armpits. It is called the contrition of acanthosis nigricans. People suffering from moderate to mild level of resistance to insulin may display an extraordinary phenomenon of having both high insulin level of blood glucose and high blood pressure together.

The people who are most susceptible to this condition are people having a family history of diabetes, low HDL cholesterol and high triglycerides, high blood pressure, history of gestational diabetes or diabetes during pregnancy or mothers who have given birth to babies weighing more than 4 kgs, minority group background.

A fasting glucose test or a glucose tolerance test can detect a diabetic condition or a pre-diabetic condition to a fairly accurate extent. However, these tests show the presence of insulin resistance in an indirect way. A test called the euglycemic clamp is a more dependable test for the detection of insulin resistance.

Posted in Insulin