Glossary - 2

Honey: A natural syrup that comes from flowers from which bees collect nectar. It contains glucose, fructose, and water. While it has been touted as a more natural alternative to sugar, it is nevertheless converted to glucose in the body.
Hormone: Chemicals that are secreted by glands in the body and then travel through the bloodstream to affect various functions of the body.
Hyperglycemia: A high level of sugar in the bloodstream.
Hypoglycemia: Lowered blood sugar.
Insulin: The hormone produced by the beta cells of the pancreas. It acts to move glucose into the body's cells. Either the diabetic does not produce enough insulin or his cells cannot use it properly.
Invert sugar: A form of sucrose.
Islets of Langerhans: Tiny cells making up a very small part of the pancreas. Their alpha cells produce Glucagon, and the beta cells produce insulin.
Juvenile diabetes: See insulin dependent diabetes.
Insulin dependent diabetes: Also known as juvenile diabetes. Patients require injections of insulin and a strict diet in order to control the disease.
Ketoacidosis: A sign of poor diabetic control in which toxic substances known a ketone bodies build up in the blood and cause it to become acidic. Ketoacidosis may induce diabetic coma.
Ketones: Bodies that form when there is a lack of insulin in the body and tissues begin to break down. Acetone, a ketone, has a distinct fruity smell, which is why diabetic' s "acetone breath" may be attributed to poor control.
Ketonuria: The presence of ketones in the urine.
Lactose: A combination of two other sugars, glucose and Galactose; also known as milk sugar. Makes up about 4½ percent of cow's milk.
Maltose: Made up of two glucose units linked together. It is made during the breakdown of starch.
Mannitol: A sugar alcohol that is absorbed slowly into the blood and causes less of a rise in blood sugar than either sucrose or glucose. Derived from the sugar mannose, Mannitol also acts as a laxative in large amounts.
Maple syrup: A syrup made from the sap of maple trees; mostly sucrose.
Maturity onset diabetes: Another term for non-insulin-dependent diabetes. Most diabetics have this type of diabetes.
Meal plan: An individual plan for a person with diabetes, which takes into account the person's eating habits, among other factors, and prescribes a diet for the number and type of exchanges to be eaten at each meal. The meal plan provides a proper measure of the three energy yielding foods carbohydrates, proteins, and fats so that the person receives enough nutrients and calories.
Metabolism: The process by which the body breaks down and uses chemicals in food for energy and building blocks.
Molasses: Obtained from sugar; is made up of about one half to three fourths sugar.
Monounsaturated fat: Fats that are unlike both polyunsaturated and saturated fats because they neither lower nor raise blood cholesterol.
Neuropathy: A general term for any disease of the nerves.
Non insulin dependent diabetes: Also referred to as maturity onset diabetes. This type of diabetes does not require the person to take insulin injections to control the disease.
Obesity: A condition of being considerably overweight. Usually, anyone more than 20 percent overweight is considered obese.
Oral hypoglycemic agents: Drugs that can be taken orally in the form of pills to lower blood sugar and control diabetes. These pills do not, however, contain insulin, which is a protein and would break down under the chemicals in the mouth and digestive system.
Pancreas: A gland in the abdominal area, just behind the stomach. The gland houses the alpha and beta cells in the Islets of Langerhans, which make glucagon and insulin.
Polyunsaturated fat: Fats derived from vegetable sources. These fats lower the blood cholesterol level and are considered a favorable alternative to saturated fats, which raise the blood cholesterol level.
Polyuria: The condition of excessive urination.
Protein: A chain of amino acids. Proteins are used by the body for repair and growth. The enzymes that allow the body's chemical reactions to take place and speed them up are also proteins. Proteins yield 4 calories per gram.
Retinopathy: A general term for the disease of the retina in the eye.
Saccharin: A noncaloric sweetener that is several hundred time sweeter than sugar.
Saturated fat: Fats derived from animal sources. These fat raise blood cholesterol, and physicians generally ask patients with diabetes or cardiovascular problems to avoid them.
Sorbitol: A sugar alcohol that is absorbed by the body more slowly than glucose. It usually causes less of a rise in blood sugar. In large amounts it may act as a laxative.
Starch: A long chain of sugars that does not usually taste sweet. Through digestion starches are broken down into sugars Examples of starches cereal, Potatoes, and pastas.
Sucrose: A natural sugar derived from sugar beets and sugar cane. Beet sugar, brown sugar, cane sugar, invert sugar, raw sugar, turbinado sugar, and table sugar are all other names for sucrose.
Sugar alcohol: Products made from sugars that are broken down and absorbed more slowly by the body. Sugar alcohol eventually become sugar. Sorbital, mannitol, and xylitol are all sugar alcohols.
Vascular: A term that refers to the blood vessels.
Vitamins: Substances which the body requires in small quantities for normal body functions. Vitamins A, D, E, and K are classified as fat soluble vitamins; vitamins C and B are classified as water soluble vitamins.
Xylitol: Xylitol is a sugar alcohol that can act as a laxative in large amounts.

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