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Blood sugar regulation
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Blood glucose is the sugar that cells live on, and its level barely moves whether we eat or go without eating. Two hormones pull that off by splitting the work between them: insulin and glucagon.
When glucose rises, insulin is released and glucose moves from the blood into the cells. When glucose falls, glucagon is released and brings it back up. Glucagon is made by the alpha cells of the pancreas, and it does two things: it breaks down stored glycogen and it also makes new glucose.
In the middle sits the liver, which acts as a buffer. After a meal it stores glucose as glycogen, which is the storage form of glucose, and over the following hours it releases it back.
Think of a pantry: it fills up at the end of a meal and slowly empties between meals.
In brief
Insulin and glucagon work together to maintain blood glucose and regulate its delivery to tissues.
High glucose triggers insulin release, which moves glucose into cells; low glucose triggers glucagon, which raises it.
The liver acts as a buffer: it stores glucose as glycogen after a meal and releases it over the following hours.
A pantry that fills up at the end of a meal and empties between meals.
Glucagon, from the pancreatic alpha cells, breaks down glycogen and also makes new glucose.
Sources (2)
- National Center for Biotechnology Information, StatPearls PublishingPhysiology, Glucagon, StatPearlsPublished
- National Center for Biotechnology Information, StatPearls PublishingPhysiology, Glucose Metabolism, StatPearlsPublished
This page explains the topic in general terms; it does not tell anyone what treatment to follow.
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