Glucose in the Blood

Blood Sugar Level

Chemistry Topics
Study Chemistry
5 min readMay 29, 2024

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What is Blood Glucose?

Glucose in the Blood or blood sugar is the main type of sugar that provides energy for performing various biological activities. It comes mainly from the food you eat. The human body breaks down most of the glucose obtained from various foods you eat and releases it into your bloodstream.

Glucose Level in the Blood, normal blood sugar levels in the human body with health benefits
Blood Glucose Level

When the glucose level in your blood goes up, it signals your pancreas to release hormones like insulin. It commonly helps in the metabolism of glucose in your cells to obtain energy.

The hormone, insulin is produced in beta-cells of islets of Langerhans of your pancreas. Like glucose, it also helps in the metabolism of fats and proteins obtained from various types of foods.

When the glucose level in your blood goes up, the pancreas in your body may release insulin. Glucose is the most important stimulus that helps in the release of insulin.

A rise in blood glucose levels signals insulin secretion. The effect is more predominant when glucose is administered either directly or through carbohydrate-rich meals.

Benefits of Glucose in the Blood

Glucose is the simplest sugar that provides energy to maintain various biological systems such as the brain, muscles, and some other body organs and tissues.

Our brain generally depends on the energy that is obtained from glucose during metabolism. Due to high energy requirements and the inability to store glucose, our brain needs a constant supply of sugar.

It also helps in the formation of various components of living organisms. In the human body, various glycoproteins and glycolipids are made by glucose molecules.

The glycoprotein collagen is formed by glucose molecules. It is the essential structural component for our skin, muscle, bone, and other body tissues. Glycolipids are the basic components of the membrane. Therefore, it surrounds each cell in the body and its intracellular structure.

Glucose may also regulate blood sugar levels in your body. An abnormally high or low value of glucose levels causes serious health problems in the human body. It is a life-threatening complication of human health.

We can store blood glucose in the form of glycogen during glycolysis. Glycogen in muscle is rapidly broken down when we need glucose to perform various biological processes.

Glucose is the most important stimulus that signaling for insulin secretion. Insulin is a hormone that helps to control blood glucose levels in your body. Therefore, the effect is more predominant when glucose is administrated orally either directly or through carbohydrate-rich foods.

Insulin influences glucose metabolism in many ways. It can lower blood glucose levels by promoting its utilization, storing it in your body, and inhabiting its production. Insulin may also play a key role in lipid and protein metabolism.

Normal Blood Glucose Level

In the human body, a blood sugar level test measures the amount of sugar or glucose present in a certain amount of your blood. Glucose is the major source of energy in any biological system of our healthy lifestyle. It is a basic building block of carbohydrates that we eat from various foods such as fruit, cereal, bread, pasta, and rice.

Glucose is the most important stimulus that signaling for insulin secretion. Insulin is a hormone that helps to control blood sugar levels in your body. Therefore, the effect is more predominant when glucose is administrated orally either directly or through carbohydrate-rich foods.

Insulin influences glucose metabolism in many ways.

  • Glucose can lower blood glucose levels by promoting its utilization, storing it in your body, and inhabiting its production.
  • Insulin may also play a key role in lipid and protein metabolism.
    Blood Sugar Test

Various medicines can raise or lower blood glucose levels in your body. Therefore, always, tell your doctor about the medicine you taking before testing. After taking blood from your body, the blood sugar level test can be carried out in many ways:

  • Fasting: After you have not eaten any foods for at least 8 hours. The normal level of glucose after fasting or eight hours of meal is 70 to 99 mg/dL.
  • Random: Such a test can be performed at any time of the day. A random blood glucose test can depend on when you last take food. In most healthy people, the glucose level will be 125 mg/dL (6.9 mmol/L) or lower.
  • Two hours after you drink a certain amount of glucose: The expected blood sugar level after you take a certain amount of glucose is 155 mg/dL (8.6 mmol/L) or lower.

The blood glucose test is used for monitoring human health or diabetes problems of a person. The test must carried out if you have any of the following symptoms:

  • Frequently urinate
  • High Blood pressure or unhealthy cholesterol levels
  • History of heart disease
  • Recently gained a lot of body weight
  • Blurred vision or problems in your vision
  • Confusion or a change in the way you normally talk or behavior

Types of Blood Sugar Tests

The blood sugar level test can be used to monitor or screen a person for stage of diabetes. High blood glucose or sugar levels and diabetes may not cause symptoms in the early stages. Therefore, we need to continue monitoring our blood sugar levels through fasting blood sugar tests.

The glucose level test measured by blood collected from your vein is more accurate than blood glucose measured from a fingerstick by a glucose meter.

Fasting Test

At the prediabetes stage, the blood glucose level is 100 to 125 mg/dL during fasting. In such conditions, the risk of developing type 2 diabetes of a person is increses. In this stage, we need medical attention to control the eating of foods that contain a high amount of glucose.

At the diabetes stage of a person, the value of blood glucose levels is 126 mg/dL or higher. At this stage, we need serious medical attention.

Therefore, immediately contact your doctor if your blood sugar level is 126 mg/dL or higher.

Random Test

Like other testing, a random blood glucose test is also useful for suggesting diabetes in a person. A level of 200 mg/dL or higher indicates a person’s diabetes stage.

After performing such testing, you need to contact your doctor for monitoring or screening.

What causes higher or lower than-normal glucose levels?

Many medical conditions may cause a higher glucose level than normal including:

  • When your thyroid gland is overactive
  • During pancreatitis
  • During trauma, stroke, heart attack, or surgery
  • Rare types of tumors that cause cancer

An abnormally low glucose level (hypoglycemia) may be caused due to the following health conditions:

  • When your pituitary gland does not work properly
  • Thyroid gland or adrenal gland disorder
  • Tumor in your pancreas
  • If you taking too little food or too much insulin or diabetes-related medicines
  • Liver or kidney disease
  • Weight loss after weight loss surgery or vigorous exercise

References

https://www.priyamstudycentre.com/2024/05/glucose-molecule.html

https://www.cmihealth.com/blogs/news/what-your-blood-glucose-test-results-mean-cmi-health-blog

https://www.starhealth.in/blog/glucose-and-its-impact-on-the-human-body

https://www.healthline.com/health/glucose

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blood_sugar_level

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