The bodies of many people with diabetes are fighting a quiet war
against the essential hormone insulin. This conflict is called
insulin resistance, and while it’s a hallmark of prediabetes and
type 2 diabetes, it can also affect those with type 1. Just why
a person fails to respond properly to insulin is something of a
mystery. But there are ways to make the body more receptive to
insulin, which can help prevent or ameliorate diabetes. Building
Up Resistance In people who have neither diabetes nor insulin
resistance, eating a typical meal will cause blood glucose
levels to rise, triggering the pancreas to produce insulin. The
hormone travels through the body and induces fat and muscle
cells to absorb excess glucose from the blood for use as energy.
As the cells take up glucose, blood glucose levels fall and
flatten out to a normal range. Insulin also signals the
liver—the body’s glucose repository—to hold on to its glucose
stores for later use. However, people with insulin resistance,
also known as impaired i