Let’s revise the name: Type 2 Insulin Resistant Diabetes

When I ask people with Type 2 Insulin Resistant Diabetes what it is.   They say “my sugar is high”, or I get a blank look in return.  They go about their day taking medication and not fully understanding what is going on.  If your doctor told you that you had something, wouldn’t it be great if you understood what it truly was?

Through further questioning, I have come to a commonality among those with Type 2 Insulin Resistant Diabetes.  The word “resistant” makes little sense to most people.  As a doctor, I’ve run into numerous names that make things hard to understand. 

The word resistance refers to when cells become overwhelmed with insulin in the blood and they become resistant to it.   As sugar circulates in the blood, insulin is used to “unlock” the cell and open it up to take on the sugar.  All cells use glucose (sugar) for energy.  Your brain actually uses the most glucose in your body.

As you take on more and more sugar in your diet, it gets into the blood.  If your cells already have enough sugar, over time they put more locks on the door.  Now, what normally takes 2 insulin molecules takes 4 molecules to get the sugar into the cells.  The cell is now insulin “resistant”.

An easier way to think of it is by using the word tolerant instead of resistant.  Just like an alcoholic builds up a tolerance to alcohol.  The cells need more and more insulin to take on the necessary sugar.  The cells have built a tolerance to insulin.  For a lot of people that makes better sense.  We are saying the same thing, just using more common verbiage.

If we used the word Type 2 Insulin Tolerant Diabetes, more people would understand it better.  I believe that with this understanding they would be able to focus more on what is really going on, too high of insulin levels.

Often times, Type 2 Diabetics are given insulin to lower their blood sugar.  Now, with building more and more tolerance to insulin, that cannot be a good thing.  You will just keep on building tolerance to insulin and require more and more.

You can not cure a problem by taking on more of the same problem.  Have you ever heard of someone getting better by taking more insulin?  Better would be taking less insulin and having normal blood sugar levels.

I believe that by understanding that the problem is building up a tolerance to insulin, people will be better able to make lifestyle and nutritional changes to reverse their Type 2 Diabetes.  After all, numerous studies have shown that it is reversible in most cases.

Yeah, I know that this won’t change the name of Type 2 Insulin Resistant Diabetes.  Maybe, someone reading this article will get a better understanding by using the word tolerance.  Hopefully, this will then spur them on to making the changes they need to make to reverse their Type 2 Diabetes.   Now, they can have a better life.

I hope this helps. Please feel free to call our office today to set up a meeting with me.  810-225-7246.