Sugar!

1 Sugar cube = approximately 5 mmol of blood sugar

According to the Wiki, the blood sugar concentration or blood glucose level is the amount of glucose (sugar) present in the blood of a human or animal. Normally, in mammals the body maintains the blood glucose level at a reference range between about 3.6 and 5.8 mM (mmol/L). It is tightly regulated as a part of metabolic homeostasis.

The mean normal blood glucose level in humans is about 5 mM (5 mmol/L or 90 mg/dL) (since the molecular weight of glucose, C6H12O6, is about 180 g/mol). However, the glucose level fluctuates during the day. It rises after meals for an hour or two by a few grams and is usually lowest in the morning, before the first meal of the day (termed “the fasting level”). The total amount of glucose normally in human blood is only about 3.3 to 7g (assuming an ordinary adult blood volume of 5 litres, plausible for an average adult male).

When a blood sugar level is outside the normal range, it may be an indicator of a medical condition. A persistently high level is referred to as hyperglycemia or if low as hypoglycemia. Diabetes mellitus is characterized by persistent hyperglycemia from any of several causes, and is the most prominent disease related to failure of blood sugar regulation. A temporary elevated blood sugar level may also result from severe stress, such as trauma, stroke, heart attack, or surgery; and also from illness. Alcohol, after an initial surge in blood sugar, tends to cause blood sugar to fall. Also, certain drugs can increase or decrease glucose levels.

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Posted on February 4, 2010 at 2:52 pm by Charles · Permalink
In: Sugar, Video

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  1. Written by JustinKN
    on February 7, 2010 at 6:46 pm
    Permalink

    Diggin’ the music in the video.

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