Our body is made of cells and the source of energy for the cells is the glucose. When you eat carbohydrate, such as a bowl of cereal, rice, wheat, pasta or fruit, your digestive system breaks down the carbohydrates into glucose (simple sugars), which travel through your blood stream to energize cells. To understand diabetes, it is necessary to understand the basics of how your body metabolizes (breaks down) blood glucose. Every cell in our body requires energy for its function.

Insulin s released by the beta cells of the pancreas in response to the rise in blood glucose levels after eating. Insulin directs the glucose into the liver and muscle cells, promoting the storage of nutrients and preventing your blood glucose levels to rise excessively. Insulin also increases the uptake of amino acids (building blocks of protein) and fatty acids (building blocks of fats) into protein and fat stores. Insulin is therefore important for regulating metabolism by promoting energy storage and cell growth.

The liver converts glucose that is not needed immediately for energy into glycogen (which is stored in the liver). When blood glucose levels drop too low, insulin secretion falls and your pancreas releases the hormone glucagon, which prompts your liver to reconvert stored glycogen into glucose and release into the bloodstream. A normal functioning pancreas ensures there is a staple supply of nutrients for your body. This is important for certain organs such as your brain and heart which depend on a steady supply of glucose.

In people with diabetes, insulin is either no longer produced or not produced in sufficient amounts by their body. In both such cases, instead of being turned into energy, glucose stays in the blood resulting in high blood glucose levels. After eating, the glucose is carried through blood in your body, that glucose level in blood is called glycaemia.

In a person who is overweight or obese, the cells of the body become less responsive to insulin, which in turn causes the body to secrete more insulin to maintain normal metabolism. The pancreas would usually try and compensate for this resistance by pumping out more insulin. For most people with insulin resistance, blood glucose levels stay within a normal range. But for some people, the insulin producing cells fail -to keep up with this demand with blood glucose levels rising and resulting in Type 2 diabetes.

In Type 1 Diabetes (Insulin dependent) the person’s immune system attacks and destroys the insulin-producing cells (beta cell) in the pancreas.

Note: There is currently no cure for diabetes; you can live an enjoyable life, symptom- free and maintain good health by learning about the disease, diet, exercise, prevention and effectively managing it. Blood glucose levels can be monitored and managed through self-care, lifestyle changes by diet and exercise and treatment.