Skip to content

Glucose Deficiency

Contents

DSCN2943aWhat Is Glucose?

[dropcap]G[/dropcap]lucose is the most important simple sugar in human metabolism because it is the primary source of energy for most cells of the body and is particularly required by the brain.

Q: Where does glucose get energy?

A: The energy in glucose originally comes from the sun. Plants capture and bind the sun’s energy by means of photosynthesis. We eat the plants directly or indirectly by eating food from animals  that have eaten plants.

Energy from glucose is obtained in the body from its reaction with oxygen (oxidation) that occurs in power producing mitochondria within cells.1

Humans cannot live without an adequate supply of glucose to the body.

What Is Glucose Deficiency In Celiac Disease and/or Gluten Sensitivity?

  • Glucose deficiency is a classic symptom of celiac disease that results when the level of glucose within cells is too low to meet metabolic needs of the body for this sugar.
  • Deficiency is characterized by alterations in:
  1. Neurologic function because brain tissue is particularly dependent on glucose for energy;
  2. Metabolic function of glucose-dependent tissues which include red blood cells, white blood cells, bone marrow, eye, inner heart of the kidney, and peripheral nerves because these tissues cannot metabolize fatty acids as an alternate source of energy; and
  3. Muscular function because muscle cells continually require glucose for energy production.
  • Research investigating the metabonomic signature of celiac disease (metabolic response to celiac disease) through nuclear magnetic resonance of urine and blood samples of patients at diagnosis of celiac disease explains the well-known chronic fatigue in celiac patients brought about by glucose deficiency.
  • Gluten free diet returns glucose  to normal levels indicating the renormalization of the main energy metabolic pathway together with a recovery of villous function.2

How Prevalent Is Glucose Deficiency In Celiac Disease and/or Gluten Sensitivity?

Glucose deficiency is a common finding in persons with untreated celiac disease.3

What Are The Symptoms Of Glucose Deficiency?

Glucose deficiency is marked by these symptoms:

1. Neurologic:

  • Irritability.
  • Difficulty concentrating.
  • Diminished memory.
  • Poor judgment.
  • Dizziness.
  • Restlessness.
  • Headache.
  • Faintness.
  • Nervousness.
  • Fatigue.
  • Tremulousness.
  • Ataxia.
  • In some people, violent behavior.

2. Metabolic:

  • Hunger.
  • Weakness.
  • Inability to stay warm.
  • Visual disturbances
  • Low/abnormal blood counts (red cells, white cells, platelets).
  • In children, failure to gain weight.

3. Muscular:

  • Lack of strength.
  • Easy muscle fatigue.
  • Heart palpitations.

How Does The Body Get Glucose?

  • Glucose must be obtained from the diet. During digestion, dietary glucose is absorbed from villi of the small intestine into the bloodstream following its release from food. The process is in 2 steps:

1. From the liquid food mix inside the hollow of the small intestine, each glucose molecule is carried by active transport across the cell barrier membrane into the inside of an enterocyte. Enterocytes are cells that form the wall of each tiny villus that number in the millions. In this process, two sodium ions transport one glucose molecule.

2. Then, the glucose molecule, now within the cell, diffuses passively by itself across the serous membrane (other side) of the cell into the tiny blood vessel located within the hollow of the villus.

  • In the body, glucose is produced by the metabolism of carbohydrates, fats and proteins, which requires sufficient levels of various nutrients, including chromium, B vitamins, zinc, magnesium and vitamin D. These nutrients are commonly deficient in untreated celiac disease, thus contributing to glucose deficiency.
  • Glucose is made available to cells through the regulating action of insulin, a hormone produced in the pancreas.

What Does Glucose Do In The Body?

  1. Provides the only fuel normally used by brain cells. Because neurons, which are the cells that communicate with each other, cannot store glucose, they depend on the bloodstream to deliver a constant supply of glucose. Brain cells need two times more energy than other cells in the body. Neurons have a high demand for energy because they are always in a state of metabolic activity. Even during sleep, neurons are still at work repairing and rebuilding their worn out structural components.4
  2. Provides energy for normal mental function. Because glucose can be rapidly used up during mental activity, low blood glucose levels can lead to a significant deterioration in attention abilities. Concentration actually drains glucose from a key part of the brain associated with memory and learning.4Concentration uses nearly a third of the body’s energy.5
  3. Provides energy for normal nerve transmission. Most demanding of a neuron’s energy are the bioelectric signals responsible for communication throughout the nervous system. Manufacturing enzymes and neurotransmitters must be transported out to the very ends of their nerve branches that can be several feet away. This nerve transmission consumes one-half of all the brain’s energy (nearly 10% of the whole body’s energy).4
  4. Continually needed for production of vital compoun. Examples include the sugars for the genetic materials DNA and RNA.
  5. Provides energy to keep warm.
  6. Provides energy to power muscles to do work.

How Does Glucose Deficiency Develop In Celiac Disease and/or Gluten Sensitivity?

Glucose deficiency develops in celiac disease through these mechanisms:

  • Impaired enzyme digestion of carbohydrates limits release of their glucose due to enzyme deficiency caused by injury to villi where enzymes are located.
  • Impaired absorption of glucose from the gut due to limited absorptive surface resulting from tissue damage.
  • Impaired transport of glucose from the gut into the bloodstream.6.
  • Impaired metabolic production of glucose in the body in part due to required, but insufficient, levels of chromium, B vitamins, zinc, magnesium, and vitamin D.

Does Glucose Deficiency Respond To Gluten-Free Diet?

Yes. Celiac disease-related glucose deficiency responds quickly to gluten free diet. However, deficient levels of chromium, B vitamins, zinc, magnesium and vitamin D may need to be corrected.

6 Steps To Correct Glucose Deficiency:

  • [dropcap]1[/dropcap]Meet, or Exceed the Dietary Reference Intakes (DRI) for Glucose in grams per day:

[box type=”success” ]Carbohydrate should be 45-65% of total calories consumed daily.7[/box]

  • [dropcap]2[/dropcap]Diet – Include Food Sources Richest in Glucose:

 

[box type=”shadow” ]
Plant Sources:

  • Honey, syrups, all edible disaccharides.
  • Fruit.
  • Vegetables.
  • Starches.
  • Celluloses.

Animal Sources:

  • Glycogen from meat sources.
  • Lactose from milk sources.5[/box]

 

  • [dropcap]3[/dropcap] Diet – Avoid  or Limit These Foods That Deplete or Interfere With Absorption:

[box type=”shadow” ]

  • Black tea.

[/box]

  • [dropcap]4[/dropcap]Monitor Medications That Deplete or Interfere With Absorption:

[box type=”shadow” ]

Here are common medications that deplete glucose. Ask your doctor or pharmacist about this possible adverse effect if you are taking any of the drugs listed below. Do not stop prescribed medications without supervision.

This is not a complete listing.

  • Cholesterol lowering drugs (Lipitor®, Crestor®, Zocor®, and others). [/box]
  • [dropcap]5[/dropcap]Manage Nutritional Supplements to Obtain Glucose:

[box type=”shadow” ]

  • Glucose tablets are available for hypoglycemia.[/box]
  • [dropcap]6[/dropcap]Other Supplements That Deplete or Interfere With Absorption:

[box type=”shadow” ]

  • Check with your pharmacist.[/box]

What Do Medical Research Studies Tell About Glucose Deficiency In Celiac Disease and/or Gluten Sensitivity?

RESEARCH STUDY SUMMARIES

“The metabonomic signature of celiac disease.“ This study investigating the metabonomic signature of celiac disease (metabolic response to celiac disease) through nuclear magnetic resonance of urine and blood samples of 34 patients at diagnosis of celiac disease compared to 34 healthy controls explains the well-known chronic fatigue in celiac patients.

This study demonstrated higher levels of blood glucose and 3-hydroxybuteric acid and lower levels of amino acids, lipids, pyruvate and choline than healthy controls. Altered levels of glucose and ketonic bodies suggest alterations of energy metabolism. Pyruvate is the product of glycolysis (the metabolism of glucose that does not require oxygen). A decreased level of pyruvate is consistent with impairment of one or more steps in the glycolysis process itself. If glycolysis is reduced, lipid B-oxidation (conversion of fat to energy) should be increased, but under conditions of malabsorption, intake of lipids is also reduced (due to fat malabsorption). Without this major pathway for energy metabolism, the body’s use of ketonic bodies becomes a more important source of energy, explaining the higher levels of 3-hydroxybuteric acid in blood and acetoacetate in urine.

GFD returns glucose and 3-hydroxbuteric acid to normal levels indicating the renormalization of the main energy metabolic pathway together with a recovery of villous function. Low pyruvate and lactate suggest thiamin deficiency (vitamin B1) which is required for carbohydrate metabolism.8

“Sugar absorption by small bowel biopsy samples from patients with primary lactase deficiency and with adult celiac disease.” Study investigating glucose absorption in celiac disease showed that the absorption of glucose by the biopsies from patients with celiac sprue did not follow the expected chemical reaction (Michaelis-Menten kinetics) and was compatible with that of passive diffusion or low saturation conditions. Active transport with low saturation reactions in patients with celiac disease suggests that in these patients not only the number of functioning carrier molecules is diminished but also the affinity of the existing carrier for sugar molecule is reduced.6

Sources:
  1. http://hyperphysics.phy-astr.gsu.edu/hbase/organic/sugar.html accessed 11 14 12 [↩]
  2. Bertini I, Calabrò A, De Carli V, et.al. The metabonomic signature of celiac disease. J Proteome Res. 2009 Jan; 8(1):170-7. [↩]
  3. Murray JA, the widening spectrum of celiac disease. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. Mar 1999; 69(3):354-365. [↩]
  4. http://www.fi.edu/learn/brain/carbs.html © 2004 – The Franklin Institute Online accessed 11 14 12 [↩] [↩] [↩]
  5. Kathleen Mahan and Sylvia Escott-Stump, ed. Krause’s Food, Nutrition & Diet Therapy, 10th Edition. Philadelphia, PA. USA: W.B. Saunders Company, 2000. [↩] [↩]
  6. Beck IT, Da Costa LR, Beck M. Sugar absorption by small bowel biopsy samples from patients with primary lactase deficiency and with adult celiac disease. Am J Dig Dis. 1976 Nov; 21(11):946-52. [↩] [↩]
  7. Institute of Medicine: Dietary Reference Intakes for Energy, Carbohydrate, Fiber, Fat, Fatty Acids, Cholesterol, Protein, and Amino Acids. Washington D.C., National Academy of Sciences. [↩]
  8. Bertini I, Calabrò A, De Carli V, et.al. The metabonomic signature of celiac disease. J Proteome Res. 2009 Jan; 8(1):170-7. [↩]
Tags:

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *