The Glucose challenge-a patient’s perspective

Glucose is such a strange commodity! Our bodies cannot do without it, yet we can die because there is too much of it in blood. Insulin produced by the pancreas is responsible for transporting this energy-giver from blood in to body cells. A shortage of insulin or an inability of insulin to discharge its function leads to piles of glucose lying in blood while cells just across a thin membrane die for want of it.

Doctors often ask for what is called a Glucose Challenge Test. You are asked to drink a fixed volume of the sweet stuff and then technicians measure how long a body takes to move the stuff out of the bloodstream. How about a new perspective on the term ‘Glucose Challenge’? Could there be a way out of the vicious cycle of too much glucose in blood while cells starve for want of it?

There is no universal answer but people in the pre-diabetes II zone can indeed reverse the progression towards the full-blown form of the disease. Reduction even a few pounds of body weight and moderate exercise improve insulin’s ability to move insulin from blood in to cells where they belong. Patient awareness and compliance with simple diet and lifestyle instructions can stave off Type II Diabetes in a majority of conditions. The disease is relatively easy to manage with oral medication if attended to in time. Type II diabetes tends to strike in middle-age and the elderly are vulnerable as well.

The versatile human body can make glucose from carbohydrates and from proteins as well. Sugar, oil and fat ate the three most common culprits for excess glucose in blood, so why not find ways to cut back if not cut out these extravagant food ingredients from our diet? Sugar is the easiest target with Aspartame, Stevia and Sucralose all vying to take its place. Honestly, sugar substitutes structured with additives such as micro cellulose are so good that it is sometimes difficult to tell whether delicious desserts have one of these substitutes or the old-styled sugar.

Grills, bakes, barbecues with low-fat margarine, mayonnaise and sauces are great switches from deep-fried food with greasy dressings. The lighter styles of cooking and eating make us more energetic and less drowsy, apart from the delight of a new wardrobe, one size smaller than we have been for years! You could see nutrition and diet expert recommended by your doctor and start a powerful campaign to keep Type II Diabetes away. This is especially important for people with a family history of diabetes, genetic pre-disposition to the disease or even a hint of pre-diabetes. Ask your doctor, if you do not exercise already, to check if you are well enough to start brisk walks at least thrice a week.

Sanguine diet and judicious exercise, under a doctor’s supervision, can help you take Glucose head-on, keeping it in cells where it belongs. A few people may need to pop pills and perhaps take insulin as well, but the effort pays rich and regular dividends in terms of longevity and quality of life, with savings in Health Insurance costs as well.