Diabetes in Practice for Allied Health

Increase your diabetes knowledge and be able to have a helpful and supportive conversation with the people you see. Earn 3.5 CPD hours.

Definitioner

MMOL/L

is the unit used to measure blood glucose levels. It is the abbreviation for millimoles of glucose per litre of blood.

Insulin resistance

Many people with noninsulin-dependent diabetes produce enough insulin, but their bodies do not respond to the action of insulin. This may happen because the person is overweight and has too many fat cells, which do not respond well to insulin. Also, as people age, their body cells lose some of the ability to respond to insulin. Insulin resistance is also linked to high blood pressure and high levels of fat in the blood. Another kind of insulin resistance may happen in some people who take insulin injections. They may have to take very high doses of insulin every day (200 units or more) to bring their blood glucose (sugar) down to the normal range. This is also called "insulin insensitivity."

Insulin

A hormone produced by the beta cells in the pancreas. Insulin is needed by the body to regulate the production and use of glucose.

Glucose

A carbohydrate and is the body's most important source of energy. It is produced from digested food, by the normal action of the liver, and is carried by the blood throughout the body.

Carbohydrate counting

Counting the amount of grams of carbohydrate in food to estimate the amount of insulin needed as a meal bolus to maintain a normal blood glucose level.

Carbohydrate

One of the three main classes of foods and a source of energy. Carbohydrates are mainly sugars and starches that the body breaks down into glucose (a simple sugar that the body can use to feed its cells). The body also uses carbohydrates to make a substance called glycogen that is stored in the liver and muscles for future use. If the body does not have enough insulin or cannot use the insulin it has, then the body will not be able to use carbohydrates for energy the way it should. This condition is called diabetes. See also: fats; protein.

Bolus

The amount of insulin delivered at one time, usually before a meal or when blood glucose is high.

Blood glucose levels

The measure of how much glucose (blood sugar) is in the blood. The normal level (euglycemia) is about 4 - 7 mmol/l before meals and less than 8 mmol/l after meals.

Blood glucose

The main sugar that the body makes from the three elements of food-proteins, fats, and carbohydrates-but mostly from carbohydrates. Glucose is the major source of energy for living cells and is carried to each cell through the bloodstream. However, the cells cannot use glucose without the help of insulin.

Basal

The amount of insulin needed to meet metabolic insulin requirements when an individual is not eating. The amount needed is usually 40 to 50 % of total daily insulin needs.

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