Diabetes is a disease caused as a result of chronic metabolic dysfunction of glucose, a principal energy source of the body cells. Glucose is obtained from dietary carbohydrates and synthesized in the body from a substrate of fatty acids and amino acids. The major and most important hormone that is required for glucose metabolism is insulin, which is produced and secreted from pancreatic islets β cells. Due to the lack of insulin secretion and the increase of insulin resistance the blood glucose rises and causes diabetes.
Type 1 Diabetes: This occurs when a significant amount of insulin secretion is reduced and 60-70% deaths of pancreatic beta-cells are observed. Immediate medical attention and insulin therapy is necessary. Type 1 occurs in a low percentage of the diabetic population.
Type 2 Diabetes: This occurs when a gradual reduction of insulin secretion is observed due to malfunction of pancreatic beta cells and/or the development of insulin resistance due to inefficiency in glucose metabolism. Type 2 is the most prevalent form of Diabetes.
The glucose homeostasis is very important for good health, where fasting glucose should be in the range of 70 mg/dL to 120 mg/dL. Outside of this range is referred to as diabetes. Below the lower limit is called hypoglycemia (low sugar) and above the upper limit is called hyperglycemia (high sugar). People with Diabetes can have significant variations of glucose levels in a 24 hour time period. Since insulin secretion is reduced, the high level of glucose remains in the blood all the time AND as time passes the high sugar in blood causes a series of health complications/diseases.
Insulin Functions:
The regulation of insulin secretion from the ß-cell of the pancreatic islets is complex, including nervous mechanism, circulating nutrients, endocrines, and gastrointestinal hormones;
In general, all of the above mentioned activities and functions play a role in maintaining glucose homeostasis. Due to inefficient activities and dysfunctions, most of the time it fails to maintains glucose homeostasis in diabetes. The diabetes reflect significant changes in various glucose metabolism processes and breaks down the body's normal glucose balancing process to maintain glucose homeostasis. In diabetes, it is important to know some facts that cause reducing insulin secretion:
All of the above resulted due to uncontrolled glucose metabolism process with the occurrence of pancreatic ß-cells, making the cell dysfunctional. In order to maintain the respective cell's vitality, the daily intake of micronutrients, vitamins, and antioxidants are essential. Taking these as supplements benefits the pancreatic cell's functionality and slowly improves all the pancreatic endocrine hormone secretions processes, including insulin.
Cell dysfunction and ROS: Pancreatic ß-cells as well as other body cells are affected due to reactive oxygen species (ROS) produced during all metabolic reactions and processes, especially the energy transportation system.
Some ROS are: Superoxide anion radical (O 2--.), Hydrogen peroxide (H2O2), Singlet oxygen (1O2), Hydroperoxyl radical (HO2.), Hydroxyl radical (.OH), Peroxide radical (ROO.) etc.
Mitochondrial respiration is also a source of ROS, with 0.2% of oxygen consumed being normally converted into superoxide in a quiescent state. Unless adequately detoxified, superoxide causes mitochondrial oxidative stress and may contribute to decline in mitochondrial functions, which may cause a wide variety of pathologies.
All these conditions are due to imbalanced or reduced availability of nutrients to beta cells, small repeated increase in ROS production, lower ATP (energy) synthesis, and inadequate antioxidant balance may pre-dispose to beta cell dysfunction.
Glucose metabolism pathways include
Energy Production Pathway (Pyruvate Production) And Pentose Phosphate Pathways
Glucose for energy production pathways:
The Pentose Phosphate Pathway (PPP) (also called the "Phosphogluconate Pathway" and the "hexose monophophate shunt"): is a metabolic pathway parallel to glycolysis, occurs only in cytoplasm. It generates NADPH and Pentoses (5 carbon sugar) as well as ribose 5-phosphate (Precursor for the synthesis is nucleotide).
Note: PPP is a complex enzymatic pathway that cell carries out the direct aerobic oxidation of phosphorylated glucose into CO2 and H2O, the oxidation process is accompanied by the accumulation of reduced nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate (NADPH), an important co-enzyme. It also carries non-oxidative steps to convert into ribose 5 phosphate (6 carbon sugar to 5 carbon sugar). The activity of the pathway is normally regulated by glutathione (an antioxidant) and by insulin and other hormones that affect glucose metabolism.
All of the above bio-chemical processes need a series of co-enzymes, some need vitamins and some need minerals as co-factors. Each of the co-enzymes carries their unique functionality and lack of such co-enzymes cause impairment to energy production. During these bio-chemical reactions, waste or toxic substance may be produced which should be eliminated as cellular respiration. The energy produced should be transferred and during energy transport system ROS molecules are produced which may need to be neutralized by the cell as it produces. These are constant processes, minute to minute, day after day, 24 seven. The adequate co-enzymes, co-factors and antioxidants are in constant need to keep cellular functionally without having any stressful effect. In diabetic conditions all cells are stressed and balanced nutrients, vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants are definitely helpful.
Vitamins and minerals are often involved in the metabolic bio-chemicals process where enzymatic catalytic reactions are assisted as smooth processes of co-enzymes and co-factors. Enzymes are required for all metabolic reactions. Co-enzymes, co-factors are molecules that combine with an enzyme to facilitate enzyme functions. Co-factors stabilize the enzyme or substrate and assist directly in the reaction process. To mention a few; B-vitamins like thiamine(B1), riboflavin(B2), niacin(B3), pyridoxine(B6), folic acid, cyanocobalamine(B12), panothenic acid, biotin etc are important for energy metabolism.
Sugar metabolism is so important that certain cells like brain cells and blood cells only use glucose as an energy source and glucose entrance of these cells are independent of insulin. Most of the body cells are insulin dependent for glucose entrance. That's why insulin secretion is as vital, as it is needed in the first step of glucose utilization by the cell. Lack of insulin availability or insulin resistance glucose molecules fail to enter inside the cell; causes blood glucose rise; and over the period the condition become a pathogenesis of multiple health problems. During hyperglycemia, where cells use " insulin independent pathways" there will be excess glucose inside the cells causing toxicity and where cells follow " insulin dependent pathways " will have less glucose inside causing less energy production and the cell becomes dysfunctional. These suggest that as time passes, the cells of people with diabetes are more and more dysfunctional and require more and more medications. However, these oral medications offer time limited functionality either by enhancing or inhibiting bio-chemical processes, pathways and or physicochemical pathways as follows:
All of these medications are time limiting functions that address sugar control and do not necessarily correct dysfunctional body cells, be pancreatic, or any other body cells. However, the body needs energy every minute of every day, 24 seven, and attention should be given on how to correct the dysfunctional pancreatic ß-cell first, which will improve glucose metabolism for energy production, which in-turn improves all other cells functionality, slowly and surely while taking of vitamins, micronutrients, and antioxidants on a regular basis.
Diabetes induced complications:
People living with diabetes may have to deal with short-term or long-term complications as a result of their conditions.
Diabetic Ketoacidosis: In diabetes when the sugar cannot get into the cells, it stays in the blood. The kidney filters some and excrete through urine. Because the cells cannot receive the sugar for energy, it begins to break fats and proteins for energy, resulting ketones/fatty acids in the blood stream, causing metabolic acidosis, called diabetic ketiacidosis – a condition that could lead to life threatening complications.
Note: Diabetic ketoacidosis arises because lack of insulin in the body to begin with. This leads elevation of glucagon to make available more glucose from glycogen (stored in liver) and also producing glucose from fatty acid, lactaid following gluconeogenesis – bringing even more glucose into blood stream and worsening the condition – more and more medication is required including insulin therapy.
Polyol Pathway: When there is excess glucose where cell cannot utilize in normal metabolic energy production process, part of the glucose may transformed into sorbitol following polyol pathways. The sorbitol is unable to pass cell membrane, and deposition of these molecules can cause osmotic pressure leading micro vascular problem especially, nerve, kidneys and eyes.
Diabetes induced complications pathways: It has been shown that more ROS are produced in various tissues under diabetic conditions. As a result of increased ROS in cells, more complications may arise.
Be positive; be aware of the comprehensive glucose metabolism process that includes:
The necessity of nutrients, co-enzymes, vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants are inevitable, every minute, every day, 24 seven.
The supplementation of such balanced nutrients supplied by ADH will definitely benefit not only the diabetes population, but also the pre-diabetic.
Use HEALTHY-BETICTM product lines REGULARLY to manage your blood sugar level as well as other diabetes-induced complications that you may be experiencing.
GSIS = Glucose Stimulated Insulin Secretion, VDCC = Voltage-dependent Calcium Channels. AMP = Adenosine Monophosphate, DAG = Diacylglycerol, PKC = Protein Kinase C, PKA = Protein Kinase A
GSIS and its potentiation. Glucose is transported into the pancreatic β-cell by the glucose transporter (GLUT). Metabolism of glucose increases ATP production, closing the KATP channels, which results in membrane depolarization (Δψ), thus opening of voltage-dependent calcium channels (VDCC) and allowing Ca2+ influx. The resultant rise in [Ca2+]i triggers insulin secretion. Insulin secretion is also modulated by hormones and neurotransmitters. Incretins such as GLP-1 and GIP bind to Gs-coupled receptors and activate adenylyl cyclase (AC), which increases intracellular levels of cyclic AMP . cAMP activates both PKA and Epac2 to potentiate insulin secretion. Achetylcholine (ACh), a major parasympathetic neurotransmitter, binds to Gq-coupled receptors and activates phospholipase Cβ (PLCβ). PLCβ activation generates phospholipid-derived messengers. Among these, DAG activates PKC and IP3 mobilizes Ca2+ from intracellular storage sites.
Metabolism of common monosaccharides, including glycolysis, gluconeogenesis, glycogenesis and glycogenolysis