Vanadyl Sulfate: Could it be a wonder drug for the future? :: Sports Medicine Health Essays

Vanadyl Sulfate A oddment Drug For The Future? Introduction In the competitive world of sports, athletes ar always resolveing to get an edge. When practice is not enough, many athletes try to change their diets to gain an advantage over the competition. To obtain more improve decisions about what they eat, many athletes look closely at what happens to food in one case it enters their bodies. From studying the gastrointestinal and endocrine systems, athletes and researchers have learned to appreciate the usance of insulin in athletic performance. In order to enhance performance, researchers have demonstrable a product called vanadyl sulfate, which supposedly mimics the effects of insulin. While its effectiveness as a workout supplement is still in question, vanadyl sulfate likewise has promise as a possible alternative treatment for diabetes. The Insulin surmise To properly comprehend the importance of insulin and the rational behind wanting to ontogeny it artif icially, one must first understand the process of start metabolism. lucre metabolism is the process by which the body converts food into energy that washstand be used by muscle mobile phones. (http//encarta.msn.com/find/default.asp) The process begins when enzymes describe down food into glucose, a simple six carbon sugar that can be easily absorbed in the intestine. From there, the hormone insulin plays several(prenominal) important roles. It is obvious that the cells that make up a person fatality energy to survive and function. Insulin is crucial in the delivery of energy to cells. In the body, glucose is the standard form of energy after digestion. Unfortunately, glucoses size and structure make it hard for the molecule to pass through the outer membranes of many of the bodys cells. Insulin helps to capture this problem. Specifically, insulin bonds with the outer membrane of cells to increase permeability. This enables glucose to pass through the cell membra ne more easily and gives the cell access to more energy. Without insulin, it is extremely effortful for glucose in the blood to be used by the bodys cells as energy. Conversely, an copiousness of insulin increases the rate at which glucose is used by the cells and therefore lowers the amount of glucose left field in the bloodstream (Guyton, Hall, 972). In addition to helping to provide the cell with energy, insulin can also help the cell in other ways.