If you are often troubled by unexplained tiredness, dry mouth, and the need to frequent the bathroom, a “silent killer” may be eroding your health: insulin resistance.
The Principle Behind Insulin Resistance
Insulin is a hormone secreted by the islet cells of the human pancreas. Its role is to transport the glucose produced after digestion from the bloodstream into cells, providing them with the energy they need. In other words, insulin is the body’s energy carrier.
Insulin resistance means cells are no longer sensitive to insulin, meaning insulin cannot effectively transfer glucose.
Symptoms of insulin resistance, such as fatigue, dry mouth, and excessive urination, are often quite subtle, making it difficult to associate them with insulin resistance and, thus, diagnose.
Dangers of Insulin Resistance
Another reason insulin resistance is sometimes called a “silent killer” is that it is extremely harmful to health. Because our cells require glucose for their energy supply, bodily functions will be significantly impacted if the glucose in the blood cannot be converted into energy within the cells in time.
On the other hand, too much glucose in the blood can lead to other health issues, especially problems with metabolism, causing conditions such as fatty liver, diabetes, and chronic inflammation. The inflammatory response can further lead to various immune diseases and tumors.
Causes of Insulin Sensitivity
So what factors cause the cells to become insensitive to insulin?
1. Visceral Fat
Visceral fat accumulates around the abdomen and internal organs and is a major cause of insulin resistance.
One study found that obese adolescents have a lower capacity for subcutaneous fat production, resulting in more visceral fat. The visceral fat then makes them less sensitive to insulin, usually manifested in higher blood sugar levels two hours after a meal.
2. Inflammation
Research shows that chronic inflammation is one of the key factors inducing insulin resistance. Here, obesity (often related to visceral fat) is the culprit, as it increases inflammation incidence because fatty cells tend to encourage the secretion of more pro-inflammatory cytokines.
3. Stress
People under extra mental stress produce many more glucocorticoids, also known as stress hormones. Overproduction of these hormones can often lead to obesity. Chronic stress can also exacerbate the inflammatory response inside the body.
4. Genetics
Genetic factors may also trigger insulin resistance. Unfortunately, these factors cannot be modified. Also, if there is a history of diabetes in the family, the risk of insulin resistance is higher.
However, the human body has a regulatory mechanism for inheritable gene expression called methylation, which can change one’s genetic expression without changing the DNA sequence and thereby prevent certain adverse genes from being expressed. Factors such as exercise, diet, sleep, and stress can all affect gene methylation, and all these factors are within our control.
One study found that after eight weeks of supervised physical activity for usually sedentary volunteers, their fasting insulin levels dropped by 60 percent, and 103 DNA methylation changes were discovered in their skeletal muscles. The degree of gene methylation related to metabolic diseases, inflammation, and obesity have all shown increases, meaning the expression of such genes is reduced.
Insulin Resistance and Type 2 Diabetes
Insulin resistance is a reminder that your body is on the path to developing diabetes. When cells become insensitive to insulin, the body has to secrete more insulin. Over time, the pancreatic islets become exhausted and can no longer produce sufficient insulin, at which time diabetes occurs.
So what are the signs that you might be insulin resistant? In addition to the usual diabetic symptoms, such as dry mouth, frequent urination, and fatigue, the main sign is abdominal obesity. You may have insulin resistance if your waist circumference exceeds 40 inches for men and 35 inches for women. Moreover, having conditions such as chronic kidney disease, fatty liver, and polycystic ovary syndrome also means a higher risk of insulin resistance is in the making.
Detection of Insulin Resistance
In addition to analyzing the symptoms, we can also diagnose insulin resistance through the following medical tests:
- Fasting blood glucose test: If your fasting blood sugar reading exceeds 100 mg/dL but still does not meet the criteria for diabetes, it may indicate insulin resistance.
- Blood insulin level detection: With the reduction in insulin sensitivity, the body will produce too much insulin. If the insulin level in your blood is outside the normal range, there is a chance you may have insulin resistance.
- Glucose tolerance test: This is done by measuring the degree of increase in blood sugar and insulin secretion level two hours after ingesting a certain amount of sugar.
With these signs in mind, we can initiate a series of measures, including diet, sleep, exercise, and stress reduction, to reverse insulin resistance before it progresses to diabetes.
Views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times. Epoch Health welcomes professional discussion and friendly debate. To submit an opinion piece, please follow these guidelines and submit through our form here.