The insulin resistance syndrome happens when this hormone has less capacity to put blood glucose into the cells, being caused by the combination of hereditary influences with other diseases and habits of the person, such as obesity, physical inactivity and increased cholesterol, for example.
Insulin resistance can be detected by a blood test, which shows an increase in blood glucose levels, especially after meals or on an empty stomach.
This syndrome is a form of pre-diabetes, because if it is not treated and corrected, with food control, weight loss and physical activity, it can turn into type 2 diabetes.
How to make the diagnosis
The insulin resistance syndrome does not normally cause symptoms and, therefore, to confirm whether it is present, a glycemic curve test, also called an oral glucose tolerance test, or TOTG, should be performed.
This test is done by measuring the glucose value after ingesting about 75 g of a sugary liquid. The interpretation of the examination of the glycemic curve after 2 hours is made as follows:
- Normal: less than 140 mg / dl; Insulin resistance: between 140 and 199 mg / dl; Diabetes: 200 mg / dl or more.
As insulin resistance worsens, in addition to glucose being increased after meals, it is also increased in fasting, because the liver tries to compensate for the lack of sugar within the cells. Therefore, the fasting glucose test can also be done to assess the degree of resistance.
Fasting blood glucose values are:
- Normal: less than 110 mg / dL; Altered fasting glucose: between 110 mg / dL and 125 mg / dL; Diabetes: equal to or greater than 126 mg / dL.
Learn more about how the glycemic curve test and fasting blood glucose test are performed.
During this period, glucose levels are still able to be controlled, because the body stimulates the pancreas to produce increasing amounts of insulin, to compensate for resistance to its action.
Therefore, another way to diagnose the presence of insulin resistance is to calculate the Homa index, which is a calculation performed to assess the relationship between the amount of sugar and the amount of insulin in the blood.
The normal values of the Homa index are, in general, as follows:
- Homa-IR Reference Value: less than 2.15; Homa-Beta Reference Value: between 167 and 175.
These reference values may vary with the laboratory, and if the patient has a very high Body Mass Index (BMI), therefore, it should always be interpreted by the doctor. See what it is for and how to calculate the Homa index.
However, after a few months or years of the existence of the insulin resistance syndrome, type 2 diabetes sets in, due to the failure of the pancreas, which starts to have difficulty in producing the amount of insulin needed by the body. This disease causes symptoms such as thirst and excessive hunger, as well as several complications in the organs such as eyes, kidneys, heart and skin. Learn more about the symptoms, treatment and complications of type 2 diabetes.
What can cause insulin resistance
This syndrome, in most cases, appears in people who already have a genetic predisposition, when having other family members who have had or who have diabetes, for example.
However, it can develop even in people who do not have this risk, due to lifestyle habits that predispose to the breakdown of metabolism, such as obesity or increased abdominal volume, eating with excess carbohydrates, physical inactivity, high blood pressure or increased cholesterol triglycerides.
In addition, hormonal changes, especially in women, can also increase the chances of developing insulin resistance, as in women who have polycystic ovary syndrome, or PCOS. In these women, the changes that lead to menstrual imbalance and increased androgenic hormones also cause dysregulation of insulin functioning.
How to treat insulin resistance
If correct treatment of insulin resistance is carried out, it can be cured and thus prevent the development of diabetes. To treat this condition, guidance from a general practitioner or endocrinologist is required, and consists of losing weight, carrying out diet and physical activity and monitoring blood glucose levels, with medical monitoring every 3 or 6 months. See how food should be for those with pre-diabetes.
The doctor may also, in cases of very high risk for diabetes, prescribe medications such as metformin, which is a medicine that helps to control the production of glucose by the liver and to increase insulin sensitivity, due to the increased use of glucose by the muscles. However, if the person is strict in the treatment with diet and physical activity, the use of medications may not be necessary.
