How Fat Causes Diabetes

Glucose is the main source of energy for every organ, from the breathing lungs to the beating heart, the thinking brain, and the filtering kidneys. Glucose is virtually pushed into the cell by insulin. If there is not enough insulin, glucose will not enter cells and accumulate in the blood. High sugar in the blood damages the tissues and organs as the organs starve due to a lack of nutrition (sugar). The extra fat in the body also prevents glucose from entering the cell, and it accumulates in the blood. It is the job of a healthy pancreas to keep blood glucose between 90- 110 mg/dL. If the blood glucose is higher than 110 mg/dL, the pancreas makes extra insulin to push sugar into cells. A time comes when the pancreas can’t make extra insulin anymore, and then glucose is permanently high. The reason why some overweight patients develop diabetes, and some don’t, is that either they are physically active and burn fat and glucose, or they have an exceptionally good pancreas, which keeps on producing insulin.

This is where GLP-1 agonists (such as Semaglutide: Ozempic and Tirzepatide: Mounjaro) come into play. They assist with weight loss (specifically fat loss), allowing glucose to enter the cells more effectively.