The beginning of diabetes occurs when your immune system which normally fights harmful bacteria or viruses attacks and destroys your insulin producing cells in the pancreas. This leaves you with little or no insulin.
Potential complications of diabetes and frequent comorbidities include heart and blood vessel disease. Diabetes is associated with an increased risk of heart disease, stroke, high blood pressure and narrowing of blood vessels. Diabetes can also cause nerve damage in limbs. In order to understand diabetes, you must first understand how glucose (sugar) is normally processed in the body.
Insulin is a hormone that comes from a gland behind and below the stomach (pancreas). The pancreas secretes insulin into the bloodstream and the insulin circulates, enabling sugar to enter your cells. Insulin lowers the amount of sugar in your bloodstream. As your blood sugar level drops, so does the secretion of insulin from your pancreas.
Glucose is a source of energy for the cells that make up muscles and other tissues in your body. Glucose comes from two major sources – food and your liver. Sugar is absorbed into the bloodstream, where it enters cells with the help of insulin. Your liver stores and makes glucose. When your glucose levels are low, such as when you haven’t eaten in a while, your liver breaks down stored glycogen into glucose to keep your glucose level within a normal range.
At the Angela Elaine Nowell Foundation we are dedicated to reducing the risks of diabetes through cell energy research and how glucose (sugar) flows throughout the body which also affects the brain. Our focus is finding solutions for a healthier way to prevent diabetic complications.