All about the Pancreas
A. You start by eating a meal containin
g carbohydrates.
B. These carbohydrates are turned into glucose. T
he glucose is absorbed by the stomach and int
estines and goes into the blood.
C. Now, your blood has a high glucose level. Your
blood has the glucose but who needs the gluco
se???? The cells!! Cells use glucose to make e
nergy called ATP.
D. The cells can only take in glucose if the pancrea
s secretes insulin (a hormone.)
E. Insulin attaches to muscle, liver and fat cells an
d lets them take in glucose. Think of it like insuli
n knocking on the door of the cells to let glucos
e in.
F. Then, the glucose level in the blood goes down
BACK TO NORMAL. HOMEOSTASIS!!!!. Now, the
Insulin binds to a receptor on the surface
of a cell. The sugar goes into the cells
and is used for CELLULAR RESPIRATION
Hyperglycemia: HIGH
BLOOD SUGAR LEVELS
What are some symptoms of hyperglycemia?
• very thirsty
• frequent urination
•Dry skin
•Blurred vision
• hungry
•Kidney problems (they have
to filter all the glucose out of
your body!!!)
What if your blood doesn’t have enough sugar?
• Also called HYPOGLYCEMIA: NOT ENOUGH BLO
OD SUGAR
• The islets of Langerhans (in your pancreas) woul
d make the opposite hormone of insulin.
• Alpha cells would make Glucagon!!!! This makes
the liver release stored glucose into your blood!
• So to review, your pancreas has areas called the
islets of Langerhans. Inside them, the alpha cell
s make glucagon and the beta cells make insulin
• HOMEOSTASIS!!!!!
Symptoms of hypoglycemia
• Confusion/abnormal beh
avior
• Blurred vision
• Pass out
• Sweating
• Nervous
• Shakiness
• Heart palpitations (not no
rmal heartbeat)
What if your pancreas makes le
ss insulin, no insulin OR cells ju
st don’t care about insulin any
more (resistance) ?
Diabetes 당뇨병
Diabetes
• Type I (~10%): pancreas cells (beta cells
of the islets of Langerhans) that make ins
ulin are lost. Most cases are in children so
this was called “juvenille diabetes”
• Type II (~90%): the cells of the body stop
responding to insulin (insulin resistance)
or can lose insulin production
Diabetes Type I
• Around 5-10% of people in
the U.S.A. with diabetes.
• Develops in people at a ve
ry young age (under age 2
0).
• Not caused by diet (immu
ne system attacks body)
• Their pancreas damaged a
nd they cant make insulin
islet cells of the pancreas
Diabetes Type II
• The patient can m
ake insulin, but th
e cells are resistan
t (they don’t resp
ond or “care”)
Diabetes Type II:
This is called Diabetes Type II. It usually
affects adults. This type of diabetes is 90-
95% of all diabetes cases in the U.S.A.
Cause: genetics and LIFESTYLE
Diabetes Type II
• Why would your pancreas make less insulin or your cells (e.
g. muscles) not care about insulin anymore (insulin resistan
ce)?
• This usually develops with people who have a horrible diet
with too much sugar. If you eat so much sugar every day, y
our pancreas “gets tired” of making so much. (less insulin)
• Also, like most drugs, the cells that need insulin become res
istant. The cells no longer “hear insulin knocking on the do
or” to let glucose in.
• Either way, the glucose stays in the blood and NOT THE CEL
LS THAT NEED IT.
Diabetes creating lifestyle
October, 2010
Obesity: 비만
“…..almost no obesity”
“…expect no one in Korea would have diabetes”
“…..weight alone doesn’t cause diabetes”
“…..Korea has the same incidence (rate) of diabetes”
“…..is work, not obesity the cause?”
“…..Miracle of the Han river……work, work, work, work….”
“…..workers in South Korea have longest working hours…”
OECD: The Organization for Economic
Cooperation and Development [group of 34
democracies]
“…..a thin country has nearly the same rate of diabetes as the U.S.A…”
“…..9.1% of Korean adults have diabetes (2005)…”
“…..change from vegetarian to eating junk food, meat and dairy..…”
“…..problems include stress and little exercise…”
“…..Korean men relieve (lose) stress by drinking, not with exercise…”
“…..diabetes is a lifestyle disease….what we consume (eat), exercise,
how we deal with stress…”
