What Is Insulin Resistance?

 

 What Is Insulin Resistance?




 Insulin resistance is when cells in your muscles, fat, and liver don’t respond well to insulin, a hormone made by your pancreas that helps manage your blood glucose (blood sugar). Sometimes, insulin resistance is a short-term condition. But if left untreated for a long time, it could turn into diabetes.

Your body's main source of fuel is glucose, which it gets by breaking down the food you eat. Once glucose enters your bloodstream, insulin helps it get into your cells, where it's either used or stored for later. That signals your pancreas to stop making insulin.

But if you have insulin resistance, this process doesn't work well. Your cells aren't letting glucose in when insulin "asks" them to. As a result, more and more blood glucose piles up in your bloodstream. And your pancreas keeps making insulin.

For a while, your pancreas may be able to make so much extra insulin that your cells open up and let in glucose the way they're supposed to. That will keep your blood sugar within a normal range. But over time, your cells may become more insulin resistant and your blood glucose levels could keep rising.


How is insulin resistance treated?

Not all factors that contribute to the condition can be treated, such as genetic factors and age. For this reason, lifestyle modifications are the primary treatment for insulin resistance. Lifestyle modifications include:

• Eating nutritious foods. Your healthcare provider may recommend reducing carbohydrates and unhealthy fats. That might mean eating less sugar, red meats and processed starches. Instead, they’ll likely recommend eating more whole foods, like vegetables, fruits and whole grains. For protein, they might suggest more fish and lean poultry.

• Physical activity. Getting regular amounts of moderate-intensity physical activity can help. It helps increase glucose energy usage and improves muscle insulin sensitivity.

• Losing excess weight. In some cases, losing weight can improve insulin resistance. Your healthcare provider can suggest strategies for weight loss.

Over time, these lifestyle modifications can:

• Reduce insulin resistance

• Lower your blood glucose levels

• Decrease blood pressure

• Decrease triglyceride and LDL (“bad”) cholesterol levels

• Raise HDL (“good”) cholesterol levels




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