Insulin vs Insulin Resistance
What comes to mind when your doctor asks when was the last time you checked your glucose level? Maybe carbohydrates, insulin, or simple sugars. The word insulin is something to keep in mind. The hormone has a strong affinity for sugar. Insulin comes into existence for the most part because of the presence of sugar in your blood. Normal blood sugar levels are maintained by insulin production and release. Scientists have created a pen that can be used by people whose bodies are incapable of producing insulin naturally. This hormone is nosy and active in protein, fat, and sugar metabolism. Depending on whether a person is fasting or not, insulin plays a different role. The thing is insulin can also be a villain if it's at high levels and chronically exposed. Weight gain, the onset and progression of different diseases are all adverse effects of insulin resistance and hyperinsulinemia. In women with PCOS, excess insulin contributes to weight gain. Depending on the quantity and quality of the diet, this hormone can have a constructive or destructive effect.
What is insulin? In essence, it's a complex protein comprised of 51 amino acids that's considered a hormone. Among other things, its unique anatomy allows it to perform a wide range of tasks. It can be compared to a smart phone in that way. It first broke onto the scene around 1921 and 1922 thanks to Dr. Frederick Banting in Toronto. With insulin's emergence came other hormones like glucagon, which is insulin's counterpart. Insulin is a natural growth hormone. In contrast, glucagon breaks down things. Beta cells in the islets of Langerhans of the pancreas manufacture and release most of our insulin, while neurons in the central nervous system produce a low amount. One major responsibility of insulin is to pull glucose out of the bloodstream and start loading up energy storage located in the liver, muscle, and fat tissue. The pancreas also lowers glucagon production. You can think of insulin as a key fob that picks up and delivers glucose from the bloodstream to the liver.
This allows it to organize glucose into a storage unit called glycogen for future energy needs. Fat cells (adipocytes) and skeletal muscle cells are also capable of absorbing glucose. Skeletal muscle utilizes roughly 70% of the glucose absorbed by the whole body. It is here that a proper diet, healthy lifestyle, stress management, and understanding your genetics can be of significant benefit. Building things is what insulin is obsessed with. Insulin promotes glycogen and triglyceride storage in the liver while blocking glucagon from breaking them down. If glycogen stores are full, insulin will turn to adipocytes to store fat, creating more fat cells. For example, excess glucose in the liver is converted to fatty acids and then to triglycerides. In the opposite direction, more fat cells influence insulin to make more fat. That's two losses for you!
Insulin resistance occurs when insulin is unable to meet the demand for glucose in the blood and cannot enter the liver, muscle, and adipose tissue. In hyperglycemia, there are two significant events that occur. First, excess sugar is released into the bloodstream, which can result in a spike and then a dip in blood sugar levels. Leaving a person feeling tired and hungry. In addition, excess sugars still cause the pancreas to produce insulin, despite its inefficiency. In hyperinsulinemia, too much insulin becomes problematic. When insulin is not occupied, it becomes bored, and to keep itself busy, it engages in naughty behaviors that are detrimental to our health. Among the problems are metabolic consequences like abnormal immune responses, and pathophysiological alternations like Alzheimer's disease, chronic inflammation, and even heart failure. Insulin resistance is a hallmark of obesity and type 2 diabetes. Even worse, it controls insulin secretion, which eventually leads to hyperinsulinemia, which affects cardiovascular health.
You can see how this can manifest itself in a vicious cycle. Maintaining a healthy weight and eating a balanced diet with complex carbs, healthy fats, and lean protein (more plant-based) will support the pancreas to produce adequate insulin levels. A surplus of insulin triggers the production of androgen, a hormone that can increase testosterone levels. In women with PCOS, increased testosterone levels lead to male pattern baldness and infertility. This will be the next script to breakdown. Take the time to digest this script and we will reconnect next week. Stay Strong & Stay Vivid!
Reference
Freeman, AM et. Pennings N. (2022). Insulin Resistance. StatPearls Publishng LLC. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK507839/.
Rahman, MDS et. al. (2021). Role of Insulin in Health and Disease: An Update. MDPI. https://www.doi.org/10.3390/ijms22126403.
