In the last 50 years, the rate of diabetes and obesity has considerably increased. Scientists believe that one of the things to blame for such is the diet. One by one, experts have been identifying one culprit after the other.
Just recently, scientific investigations have pointed out that there is a very common food additive that can be held accountable for the staggering rise in diabetes and obesity cases, and that’s propionate.
This article will get you introduced to propionate, with focus on how it can put you at risk of suffering from diabetes and obesity sooner or later. Don’t forget to share this article on your various social media sites afterwards to get everyone you care about also acquainted with propionate and its ill effects on their health.
What is Propionate?
Are you fond of consuming all kinds of baked goodies? Chances are you have already been exposed to a lot of propionate. The said ingredient is regarded as an anti-mold ingredient — its presence helps prevent mold formation, thus extending the shelf life of breads and various other baked products.
By the way, its other name is E282, and it is also commonly found in numerous meat and dairy products.
It Can Cause a Surge in Glucose
Put simply, glucose is a simple form of sugar. It’s what people mean each time they talk about blood sugar.
Numerous studies conducted in the past among laboratory mice found out that a diet that included propionate encouraged the liver to produce high amounts of glucose. In turn, this caused the levels of sugar in the bloodstream of the mice to considerably increase. Recently, scientists repeated the same experiment on human beings, and the very same outcome was achieved.
Elevated Insulin Levels
What does the body do each time there’s an increase in the levels of glucose? It encourages special cells situated in the pancreas to produce the hormone called insulin.
Insulin has the ability to move sugar molecules from the blood and into the cells. So in other words, it’s because of insulin why the various cells of your body are able to obtain energy. The more glucose present in the bloodstream, the more insulin is produced to make sure that the levels of sugar in the blood do not go off the charts.
The Problem Begins With Insulin Resistance
One might think that it’s a good idea for the pancreas to churn out more and more insulin to fend off high levels of glucose. Well, the problem with having too much insulin is that eventually the cells no longer respond properly to it — the presence of the hormone sooner or later may fail to cause sugar molecules in your blood to enter your cells.
It’s what health authorities refer to as insulin resistance. Generally speaking, all cases of diabetes begin with insulin resistance because the amount of sugar in the blood just keeps rising.
A Risk Factor for Diabetes
Due to the fact that insulin resistance is characterized by the presence of too much glucose in your bloodstream, it’s not unlikely for you to end up battling diabetes.
Once you are diagnosed with diabetes, you have no other choice but to live with it for as long as you’re breathing as there’s no known cure for it — medications that a doctor may prescribe is only good for regulating your blood glucose levels to keep serious complications at bay, ranging from foot amputation, loss of vision, kidney failure to heart disease.
It Can Also Cause Obesity
If you think that insulin resistance can only cause diabetes, think again — it’s also something that can cause obesity. That’s because your body will convert some of the excess sugar in your bloodstream into fat cells. What’s more, insulin resistance can leave you feeling ravenous — overeating can definitely cause excess pounds to come into being.
The problem with obesity and insulin resistance is one can make the other worse, thus creating a vicious cycle that can lead to some really terrifying complications if it’s not broken.
