Insulin and Glucagon Importance In Diabetes
By mdssite | October 21, 2009
There are two hormones that play a crucial role in regulating our blood sugar level. These are insulin and glucagon. Both of these hormones are produced by your pancreas and without these two, it would be difficult to keep your blood sugar levels in check.
You may already be familiar with insulin. But what about glucagon? What does it do for your body? In this article, let’s talk about these two essential hormones and why they’re important in controlling diabetes.
Insulin and Diabetes
When there is an increase in our blood sugar levels, our pancreas is alerted to secrete more insulin. Insulin is the hormone that keeps our blood sugar at a normal level. Thus, the higher the glucose level in our blood, the higher the levels of insulin is produced.
In people with Type 1 diabetes, their pancreas is not able to produce insulin at all. This is why they need to get their insulin supply through insulin injectors. On the other hand, people with Type 2 Diabetes used to have fine, working pancreas but because of unhealthy eating habits, their pancreas have stopped functioning properly or they’re blood cells became resistant to insulin.
Glucagon and Diabetes
Glucagon is another hormone that is produced by your pancreas. Its function is directly opposite of what insulin does. When your blood sugar level is too low, instead of producing more insulin, your pancreas would then secrete glucagon. What this hormone does is to make your liver release the glucose it has stored. This way, excessive glucose in your blood is prevented.
Keeping Your Blood Sugar Level Steady
What is the normal level of blood sugar in a person? According to health experts, a healthy person should have between 70 to 100 mg/dl. Any increase from this range can indicate a pre-diabetes or a diabetes condition in a person.
People who have slightly higher range of blood sugar levels than what is normal are considered to have a pre-diabetic condition. Although their blood sugar levels are not high enough to be considered as a diabetic, they are at risk of developing this disease at some point in their lifetime.
How can you keep your blood sugar level steady? According to the American Diabetes Association, there are almost 21 million people in the US that have diabetes and 54 million Americans who have pre-diabetes. These numbers are expected to rise even higher along with the prevalence of fast foods and pre-processed food products with extreme sugar content.
Reports show that a person’s diet and lifestyle plays a big role in avoiding diabetes. Although people who have a history of diabetes in their family are more prone to this condition, anyone can develop Type 2 Diabetes if they don’t watch out their lifestyle.
Consequently, people who already have diabetes must be doubly careful about their diet. By regularly monitoring blood sugar levels and keeping it at a normal range, serious complications such as heart disease, kidney failure, high blood pressure and other complications can be prevented.
