If your doctor insists that you watch your glucose levels, you can be sure that this has something to do with you being a diabetic. More specifically, it will have to do with Type 2 Diabetes.
Thankfully, I'm not a diabetic but have a couple of people around who struggle with this pain-in-the-ass ailment. You can't eat this… you can't do that… man, it's a pest.
(My doctor recently asked me to stay off the meat for three months, and I gave up within 10 days.)
God only knows how these guys "live" since they have to be careful of everything including their diet, exercise, their medication, and it sometimes scares me because I would really struggle to live with the numerous restrictions that are slapped on by a doctor.
Yet there are other reasons why knowing just a bit about glucose and fructose is important, the simplest of all being accumulating a bit of general knowledge about the world around you, if not for specific health reasons such as understanding how too much sugar is not good for you and so on and so forth.
Glucose & Fructose: Similarities & Differences
Both of these compounds along with galactose make up the three most important monosaccharides (simplest forms of sugar) that provide our body with the all-important carbohydrates.
And while there are a whole bunch of differences, there are certain similarities that exist as well:
1) They share similar molecular structure in the form of C6H12O6, are sweet and are, as mentioned before, two of the three most important simple sugars utilized and needed for the human body.
2) They're one of the reasons why our cells get energy for daily activity
3) Both of them are found in combination, in almost every food that is sweet.
4) These sugars bond to create complex sugars such as di-saccharides and polysaccharides.
5) Both these sugars when consumed are processed in the liver.
Yet with these basic similarities, there are differences as well, and here are some of those aspects that you can use to distinguish between the two:
1) Firstly, glucose is considered a better source of energy for the body as compared to fructose.
2) Glucose is considered to be agreeable with the body than fructose.
3) Fructose is much more sweeter than Glucose. And too much of it is considered to be dangerous!
4) Fructose works well for diabetics since it does not need insulin to break it down to produce energy for the body.
5) The process of glucose forming when the breakdown of starch in the body occurs, yet this does not happen with fructose.
6) While both these sugars can cause weight gain if consumed in excess amounts, fructose also causes other unhealthy side effects.
7) Even though their molecular structure is the same, the arrangement of the atoms and their corresponding bonds cause them to form different substances when placed in a similar reaction.
8) Glucose, literally speaking, is one of the key substances used for metabolism and is present everywhere whereas fructose only exists in fruits, vegetables and honey.
In Closing
Since this is a health blog, there is no doubt that understanding the struggles of diabetics should be considered above all other reasons to understand the similarities and differences of glucose and fructose.
So, in being thoughtful, here are a couple of developments in the form of an artificial pancreas and a glucose monitoring device that might come in handy especially if you are a diabetic.
In addition, here's a recent study that indicated one way to control glucose levels in the body.
What's the point of all this information if you can't use it for your benefit, right?
So feel free to share tips on how to deal with diabetes from your own personal experiences…
