Shadowing Practice: The REAL Reason Diabetes Is So Dangerous - Learn English Speaking with Video
Creating lesson...
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Right this very second, sugar is circulating throughout the blood vessels in your body.
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And that sugar is supposed to be fueling your cells.
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But the balance of sugar in your blood
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and the amount of sugar going into your cells is actually a very tightly regulated metabolic process.
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But unfortunately, even in the year 2026, with all the technology and medical knowledge that we've accumulated,
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we still have more people with metabolic dysfunction than we've ever had before.
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And the main disease of metabolic dysfunction is diabetes.
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It's estimated that over 530 million adults have diabetes, and those numbers are even increasing in kids.
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And you might think, well, we just have more people on planet Earth.
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But even when we adjust for population, the percentage of people with diabetes has still increased dramatically, roughly doubling since the 1990s.
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And that's not just because human genetics have suddenly changed over the last 30 years, it's largely due to lifestyle changes.
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But if it's largely due to lifestyle changes, that means we can actually do something about it, especially with type 2 diabetes.
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So today, with the help of the bodies in the lab, we're going to walk through what diabetes actually is, type 1 and type 2,
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what causes it, what the long-term health consequences are if it's not treated, and whether or not you can actually cure it.
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It's going to be a sugary one.
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So let's jump into this anatomical and physiological awesomeness.
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So, before we take a look at a very important organ that has to do with diabetes, we first need to cover a key idea.
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Your body is constantly trying to control the amount of sugar in your blood, what we often refer to as blood sugar or blood glucose levels.
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So if I use blood sugar or blood glucose interchangeably throughout the video, just know that I'm talking about the same thing.
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Glucose is one of your body's primary fuel sources.
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Every time you eat carbohydrates, they're broken down and absorbed into your bloodstream, then causes your blood glucose levels to rise.
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But if that glucose just stayed in your bloodstream, it wouldn't be very useful.
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It actually needs to get to the inside of your cells.
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And that's where a very important hormone comes into play and that is insulin.
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And if we're going to talk about insulin, we definitely need to take a look at a real human pancreas.
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So just to orient you, you're looking at the inside of the abdominal cavity.
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So about right in this region.
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And here Here you can see the liver, here's the stomach, and if I reflect the stomach, you can see the pancreas.
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Anatomically, the pancreas can be divided into the head, the body, and even the tail that you can see me lifting up right there.
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And what makes the pancreas so interesting is that it's both an exocrine gland and an endocrine gland.
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The exocrine portion of the pancreas produces digestive enzymes and secretes those enzymes
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into the small intestine that you can see wrapping around right here.
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But the endocrine portion is what we care about today.
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Within this tissue are specialized cells called beta cells that produce insulin.
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And to understand exactly what stimulates the release of insulin from the pancreas and what insulin does once it enters the bloodstream,
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we're going to have to move over to our wonderful little diagram on the whiteboard.
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So here we have a picture of the pancreas and the first part of the small intestine.
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And full disclosure, I trace these.
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I'm certainly not a great artist as you can tell by my drawing of the cell.
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When I'm left to draw things on my own, we end up with cells looking like smiley faces.
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But you can totally tell that the outside is representing the cell membrane with some insulin receptors embedded here.
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We also have a blood vessel represented here.
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But when you eat carbohydrates, those carbs will get broken down and eventually be absorbed into the bloodstream as glucose, which will raise your blood glucose or blood sugar levels.
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And the glucose is represented as these black dots in the blood vessel.
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In response, the pancreas releases insulin, which are represented, the insulin molecules are represented by these blue triangles.
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The insulin will travel through the blood and will bind to the receptors on the surface of the cells.
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When insulin binds to those receptors, it essentially tells the cells to do this.
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eat the sugar.
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And the cell responds by taking in the glucose from the bloodstream.
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And so insulin lowers blood sugar levels by helping glucose move from the blood
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and into the cell where it can actually be utilized for energy.
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When this system works, your blood sugar stays tightly regulated.
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But when it doesn't, that's when we start running to issues such as diabetes.
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Diabetes is typically classified into two main types, type 1 diabetes and type 2 diabetes.
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Now the simplest distinction between the two is that with type 1 diabetes, you essentially don't have insulin.
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And with type 2 diabetes, you do have insulin, but it isn't working properly.
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But let's go into a little bit more detail.
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In type 1 diabetes, the immune system attacks and destroys the beta cells in the pancreas.
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And so technically type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune disease
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and this results in the pancreas losing its ability to produce insulin
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but no insulin means no signal telling the cell to take in the glucose so now we're going to have a
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sad cell unfortunately here with no glucose or sugar going inside
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and so what the result is is that glucose will stay in the bloodstream
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and this will therefore raise blood sugar levels
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Type 1 diabetes accounts for about 5 to 10% of cases and typically develops earlier in life.
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And this isn't really something that you can prevent.
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It is largely genetics combined with what we might simply call bad luck.
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With type 2 diabetes, the pancreas is still actually producing insulin, but the cells become resistant to its effects.
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Maybe you've heard people use the phrase insulin resistance, and this is what they're referring to.
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Insulin is still there, but the cells don't respond to it as well.
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And so you kind of might get something like this.
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Insulin will still bind to the receptor, but the cell or this resistant cell might respond to insulin by saying something like this.
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And that's obviously not very nice of the cell.
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And so as a result, glucose remains in the bloodstream and blood sugar levels rise.
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Now, before we move on, I want to briefly talk to you about GLP-1 medications in
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the context of weight loss by introducing you to the sponsor of today's video, Mochi Health.
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And before you diehards torch me in the comments, hear me out.
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Mochi Health is a telehealth platform that connects patients with licensed medical providers across a wide range of conditions, including metabolic health and weight management.
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And as we've been talking about in this video, when it comes to something like type 2 diabetes and insulin resistance, this isn't always just a simple matter of willpower.
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There are real physiological processes at play.
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Now, GLP-1 medications work by mimicking hormones involved in appetite regulation and blood sugar control, which can help some individuals reduce caloric intake and improve their metabolic health.
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But I want to be very clear here.
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I don't believe everyone needs to be on a GLP-1.
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In fact, many people can manage their weight and metabolic health very effectively through diet, exercise, and lifestyle changes.
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There are also people who genuinely struggle with this over long periods of time.
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And when you start weighing the potential benefits of a medication like this against the long-term risks of excess adipose tissue, some of which we're talking about in this video,
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you can see how this might make sense for certain individuals when used appropriately under medical guidance.
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And that's really where Mochi Health comes in.
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They provide access to licensed clinicians who can evaluate your individual situation, help determine if something like this is appropriate, and guide you through the process with ongoing support.
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So if you're interested, click the link in the description and use our code to get $40 off your first month.
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And now, let's get back to the video.
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So with both type 1 and type 2 diabetes, you do get a similar end result, and that is the elevation of blood sugar levels
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but through different causes and mechanisms and what's interesting about type 2 diabetes is
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that early on the pancreas actually tries to compensate by producing more insulin
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and almost like the pancreas is trying to yell at the cells
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or give them a stronger signal to take in the glucose
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and early on this actually does work to a degree so
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that in the very early stages of developing type 2 diabetes someone's blood glucose levels
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and a1c might still be normal so if a medical provider is still suspicious
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that a patient may be at risk for type 2 diabetes
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despite initial normal blood glucose levels they may consider additional testing like glucose tolerance testing
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and in some cases even looking at insulin levels to confirm
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that suspicion but over time this compensation of the pancreas producing extra insulin can't keep up
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and eventually the person's blood glucose begins to rise into pre-diabetic ranges and even eventually into full-blown diabetic ranges.
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And if someone with type 2 diabetes doesn't intervene with treatment, there are cases where the pancreas can start to wear out,
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meaning those insulin-producing cells begin to lose their function and start producing less insulin over time,
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eventually to the point where someone with type 2 diabetes may need to start taking insulin.
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So why is high blood sugar such a problem?
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Well, glucose itself isn't bad, but when it remains elevated in the bloodstream for too long, it begins to damage tissues, especially blood vessels.
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And this is where we start to see the real consequences of diabetes.
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Chronic high blood sugar can damage the inside lining of the blood vessels that supply critical tissues throughout the body.
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So damage to the blood vessels in the eye can lead to vision loss.
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Damage to the blood vessels in the kidneys can lead to kidney failure.
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And it's not just a blood vessel problem.
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Elevated glucose can also directly damage cells themselves, including nerve cells.
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And when it comes to nerves, it actually is a combination of both.
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Damage to the blood vessels that supply the nerves along with direct damage to the nerves themselves, which can lead to numbness, tingling, or loss of sensation.
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And this is called diabetic neuropathy.
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And over time, it can also cause damage to large blood vessels, increasing the risk of heart disease and stroke.
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But what actually causes the insulin resistance that leads to type 2 diabetes in the first place?
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Well there are some factors we can't control such as genetics
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and family history can increase your risk by two to three times.
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But there are also factors we can control.
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One of the biggest is the amount of fat or adipose tissue.
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As adipose tissue increases it releases signaling molecules called adipokines along with other inflammatory signals
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which can interfere with how cells respond to insulin making them more resistant.
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This is why increased body fat is strongly associated with type 2 diabetes,
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especially visceral fat which is the fat found inside your body cavities surrounding your organs.
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This type of fat tends to be more metabolically active than the subcutaneous fat found just beneath the skin
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and is one of the main reasons why visceral fat is more strongly associated with insulin resistance.
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The encouraging part is that reducing adipose tissue often improves insulin sensitivity.
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And so that often leads people to wonder, if I lose fat, especially visceral fat, can that help me prevent developing type 2 diabetes?
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And the answer is yes.
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Typically as fat levels go down, insulin sensitivity improves.
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And the primary ways we reduce fat are through exercise and diet, ideally a combination of both.
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Now there are some people out there who claim certain forms of exercise can specifically target
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or burn visceral fat more than the subcutaneous fat.
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But this is where we need to be a little careful.
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You can't perform a specific exercise like doing ab workouts or certain forms of cardio and directly target visceral fat only.
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That's not how fat loss works.
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When your body loses fat, it pulls from both visceral and subcutaneous fat.
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But here's where the nuance comes in.
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Visceral fat is more metabolically active
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which means it tends to respond more readily to things like a caloric deficit and regular exercise.
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So when people start exercising consistently and losing weight, they often do see reductions in visceral fat, sometimes even relatively quickly compared to subcutaneous fat.
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And that's likely contributed to where this idea of targeting visceral fat comes from.
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It's not that a specific exercise is only targeting visceral fat, it's that visceral fat is simply more responsive to the overall process of fat loss.
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Now obviously diet plays a huge role here but there is no single perfect diet.
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In general, prioritizing whole foods, managing total caloric intake, and maintaining a healthy body composition are going to be the biggest factors in reducing risk.
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And one other thing with exercise.
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Exercise doesn't just burn calories, it directly improves how your body handles glucose.
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When muscles contract during exercise, they can take in glucose without needing insulin, which is quite remarkable.
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After exercise, those same muscle cells become more sensitive to insulin and over time, consistent exercise leads to more mitochondria,
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more metabolic enzymes, and better overall glucose metabolism.
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And so in many ways, exercise directly targets the core problem in type 2 diabetes.
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Now preventing diabetes is one thing, but what if someone already has diabetes?
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How do you treat it and can you cure it?
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Well, for type 1 diabetes, the main treatment is insulin replacement because the body cannot produce it.
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And as of right now, we don't have a reliable way to restore that lost insulin producing capacity after the autoimmune destruction of those beta cells.
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So individuals with type 1 diabetes require insulin to survive.
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For type 2 diabetes, one of the main approaches to treatment is actually the same as prevention, and that is lifestyle changes such as diet and exercise.
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But this is often combined with medications, with metformin being one of the most commonly used first line treatments.
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But if blood glucose levels still aren't well controlled, additional medications may need to be added, such as GLP-1 receptor agonists,
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SGLT2 inhibitors, or in some cases even insulin.
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But again, here's the promising part.
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In some cases, individuals with type 2 diabetes can improve their condition so much through lifestyle modifications, diet, exercise, and weight loss,
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that their blood sugar levels can return to normal and they no longer need medication.
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And in a way, you might be tempted to think of this as a cure.
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But the medical community is careful about their wording and typically doesn't use the word cure in this instance.
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Instead this is referred to as remission because if those lifestyle factors change or if the underlying metabolic dysfunction returns, the diabetes can come back.
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But again, it is very cool
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that we have quite a bit of control over this
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and can reduce the long term consequences that unmanaged diabetes can lead to.
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the issues we discussed with the eyes, kidneys, nerves, and cardiovascular system.
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So hopefully you learned some useful information from today's video.
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Thank you so much for watching and supporting our channel.
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Of course, we'll see you in the next video.
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Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson
This C1 speaking lesson is built on the video “The REAL Reason Diabetes Is So Dangerous”. The speaker keeps coming back to these words: insulin, diabetes, blood, type, cell. This video has 177 sentences and 2633 words to shadow. The speech runs for 15:22. The speaker talks at a natural 171 words per minute, close to everyday conversation. Only 81% of the words are among the 3,000 most common in English, so the vocabulary is demanding.
Key vocabulary in this video
The 15 most advanced words in the video, with pronunciation and meaning:
| Word | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| insulin noun | /ˈɪnsəlɪn/ | A polypeptide hormone that regulates carbohydrate metabolism (in various animals including humans). |
| glucose noun | /ˈɡluː.kəʊz/ | A simple monosaccharide (sugar) with a molecular formula of C₆H₁₂O₆; a principle source of energy for cellular metabolism. |
| pancreas noun | /ˈpæŋ.kɹi.əs/ | A gland near the stomach which secretes a fluid into the duodenum to assist with food digestion. |
| visceral adjective | /ˈvɪsəɹəl/ | Of or relating to, made up of, or positioned among or within, the viscera (“internal organs of the body, especially those contained within the abdominal and… |
| bloodstream noun | /ˈblʌd.stɹɪim/ | The flow of blood through the circulatory system of an animal |
| metabolic adjective | /mɛtəˈbɒlɪk/ | Of or pertaining to metabolism. |
| receptor noun | /ɹɪˈsɛp.tə/ | A protein on a cell wall that binds with specific molecules so that they can be absorbed into the cell in order to control certain functions. |
| adipose adjective | /ˈæd.ɪ.poʊs/ | Containing, composed of, or consisting of fat; fatty. |
| subcutaneous adjective | /sʌbkjuːˈteɪnɪəs/ | Pertaining to the fatty layer under the skin. |
| caloric adjective | /kəˈlɒɹɪk/ | Relating to calories. |
| diabetic adjective | /daɪəˈbɛtɪk/ | Of or pertaining to diabetes, especially diabetes mellitus. |
| dysfunction noun | /dɪsˈfʌŋk.ʃən/ | A failure to function in an expected or complete manner. Usually refers to a disorder in a bodily organ (e.g. erectile dysfunction), a mental disorder, or the… |
| enzyme noun | /ˈɛn.zaɪm/ | A biomolecule that catalyses a biological chemical reaction: either a globular protein with this function or an RNA molecule with this function. |
| genetics noun | /dʒəˈnɛt.ɪks/ | The branch of biology that deals with the transmission and variation of inherited characteristics, in particular chromosomes and DNA. |
| resistant adjective | /ɹəˈzɪstənt/ | Which makes resistance or offers opposition. |
Phrasal verbs you will hear
| Word | Meaning |
|---|---|
| break down verb | To stop functioning. |
| come back verb | To return to a place. |
| get back to verb | Return to (an activity) |
| get off verb | To move from being on top of (something) to not being on top of it. |
| go down verb | To descend; to move from a higher place to a lower one. |
| keep up verb | To maintain; to preserve; to prevent from deteriorating or falling. |
| lift up verb | To elevate to a higher position. |
| walk through verb | To explain (something) to (someone), step by step. |
Sentences worth repeating
Short, complete lines from the video that you can reuse in everyday conversation:
- Glucose is one of your body's primary fuel sources.
- How do you treat it and can you cure it?
- Of course, we'll see you in the next video.
Grammar in this video
The structures the speaker uses most, with the exact words from the video:
| Structure | In the video |
|---|---|
| Passive voice be + past participle — the focus is on what happens, not who does it | can be divided · are specialized · be absorbed |
| Relative clauses who / which + clause — extra information about a person or thing | glucose, which will · insulin, which are · control, which can |
| Present perfect have/has + past participle — a past action that still matters now | we've accumulated · we've ever had · has still increased |
Pronunciation to watch
The speaker uses 34 contractions and reduced forms, such as we're, doesn't, don't. Say them the short way, as you hear them.
- The “sh” and “zh” sounds: dysfunction /dɪsˈfʌŋk.ʃən/, clinician /klɪˈnɪʃən/, specialize /ˈspɛʃəˌlaɪz/, modification /ˌmɑdɪfɪˈkeɪʃən/, sensation /sɛnˈseɪʃən/
- Long words — get the stress right: metabolic /mɛtəˈbɒlɪk/, subcutaneous /sʌbkjuːˈteɪnɪəs/, carbohydrate /kɑɹboʊˈhaɪdɹeɪt/, physiological /ˌfɪz.i.əˈlɑ.d͡ʒɪ.kəl/, sensitivity /ˌsɛn.səˈtɪv.ə.ti/
How to practise with this video
- Listen to the whole video once without speaking and note the words you do not know.
- Start at 0.75× speed, shadow it sentence by sentence, then go back to normal speed once it feels easy.
- Record yourself and compare with the original, paying attention to words like insulin, glucose, pancreas.
What is the Shadowing Technique?
Shadowing is a science-backed language learning technique originally developed for professional interpreter training and popularized by polyglot Dr. Alexander Arguelles. The method is simple but powerful: you listen to native English audio and immediately repeat it out loud — like a shadow following the speaker with just a 1–2 second delay. Unlike passive listening or grammar drills, shadowing forces your brain and mouth muscles to simultaneously process and reproduce real speech patterns. Research shows it significantly improves pronunciation accuracy, intonation, rhythm, connected speech, listening comprehension, and speaking fluency — making it one of the most effective methods for IELTS Speaking preparation and real-world English communication.