Miss
Samantha Morton-Herod
LMC Level 5
Unit CU4388 - Diabetes Awareness
1. Understand diabetes and the associated implications
1.1 Define diabetes
Diabetes is a condition which affects the body’s ability to use glucose. Glucose is one of the body’s principle fuels and is an energy rich sugar that is broken down by the cells to produce a small packet of energy that powers the millions of biochemical reactions that constantly take place in the body. Simply put, glucose provides energy to all of the cells in the body. The cells take in glucose from the blood and break it down for energy. Some cells, such as brain cells and red blood cells, rely solely on glucose for fuel.
We obtain glucose from the food that we eat, mainly from starch rich foods such as potatoes, rice, bread and pasta. In the small intestine, glucose is absorbed into the blood and the blood travels to the liver through the hepatic portal vein. Cells in the liver absorb most of the glucose and convert it into glycogen. This is stored in the liver and be re-converted into glucose when blood glucose levels fall. The body tries to keep a constant supply of glucose for the cells by maintaining a constant glucose concentration in the blood stream; otherwise, the cells would have more than enough glucose right after a meal but not enough in between meals and overnight. When we have too much glucose, the body stores the excess in the liver and muscles by making glycogen. When glucose is in short supply, the body mobilises the glucose from stored glycogen and / or stimulates us to eat food. The overall aim is to maintain a constant blood glucose level.
Blood glucose is therefore a type of sugar produced by the body when it digests food. It is the major fuel used by our bodies to give us energy for daily life. The main function of blood glucose is to supply the body’s cells with energy.
Diabetes is a condition that affects the body’s ability to
LMC Level 5
Unit CU4388 - Diabetes Awareness
1. Understand diabetes and the associated implications
1.1 Define diabetes
Diabetes is a condition which affects the body’s ability to use glucose. Glucose is one of the body’s principle fuels and is an energy rich sugar that is broken down by the cells to produce a small packet of energy that powers the millions of biochemical reactions that constantly take place in the body. Simply put, glucose provides energy to all of the cells in the body. The cells take in glucose from the blood and break it down for energy. Some cells, such as brain cells and red blood cells, rely solely on glucose for fuel.
We obtain glucose from the food that we eat, mainly from starch rich foods such as potatoes, rice, bread and pasta. In the small intestine, glucose is absorbed into the blood and the blood travels to the liver through the hepatic portal vein. Cells in the liver absorb most of the glucose and convert it into glycogen. This is stored in the liver and be re-converted into glucose when blood glucose levels fall. The body tries to keep a constant supply of glucose for the cells by maintaining a constant glucose concentration in the blood stream; otherwise, the cells would have more than enough glucose right after a meal but not enough in between meals and overnight. When we have too much glucose, the body stores the excess in the liver and muscles by making glycogen. When glucose is in short supply, the body mobilises the glucose from stored glycogen and / or stimulates us to eat food. The overall aim is to maintain a constant blood glucose level.
Blood glucose is therefore a type of sugar produced by the body when it digests food. It is the major fuel used by our bodies to give us energy for daily life. The main function of blood glucose is to supply the body’s cells with energy.
Diabetes is a condition that affects the body’s ability to