The New York Times: What Is Insulin Resistance and How Do You Know if You Have It?
The New York Times recently interviewed endocrinologist Ruchi Mathur, MD, a professor of Medicine at Cedars-Sinai, for two articles about insulin resistance, including early symptoms of the condition as well as lifestyle changes that can reverse it.
Insulin is a hormone that helps convert food into energy. When the body doesn’t respond effectively to insulin, it triggers insulin resistance, which can eventually lead to diabetes.
“After a number of years, your blood sugar starts to stay high after you eat and that ultimately leads to what we call prediabetes,” Mathur told The New York Times.
Among the signs that the body is struggling to manage insulin levels are feeling excessively hungry or tired, gaining weight, drinking more water than usual, and irregular periods.
“Women’s cycles are a close marker of their health,” Mathur told The New York Times.
She urged people to speak with a physician if they are experiencing any of the early symptoms of insulin resistance.
“You know your body better than anybody else,” she told The New York Times.
And, for people who know they are insulin resistant, there are ways to reverse the condition through healthy lifestyle changes. Mathur told The New York Times that taking even short two-minute breaks throughout the day for physical activity can be beneficial.
More than 37 million U.S. adults have diabetes, and more than one-third have prediabetes, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Click here and here to read the complete articles from The New York Times.