Insulin Resistance - Signs and Symptoms

Signs and Symptoms

These depend on poorly understood variations in individual biology and consequently may not be found with all people diagnosed with insulin resistance.

1. Fatigue.
2. Brain fogginess and inability to focus.
3. High blood sugar.
4. Intestinal bloating – most intestinal gas is produced from carbohydrates in the diet, mostly those that humans cannot digest and absorb.
5. Sleepiness, especially after meals.
6. Weight gain, fat storage, difficulty losing weight – for most people, excess weight is from high fat storage; the fat in IR is generally stored in and around abdominal organs in both males and females. It is currently suspected that hormones produced in that fat are a precipitating cause of insulin resistance.
7. Increased blood triglyceride levels.
8. Increased blood pressure. Many people with hypertension are either diabetic or pre-diabetic and have elevated insulin levels due to insulin resistance. One of insulin's effects is to control arterial wall tension throughout the body.
9. Increased pro-inflammatory cytokines associated with cardiovascular disease.
10. Depression. Due to the deranged metabolism resulting from insulin resistance, psychological effects, including depression, are not uncommon.
11. Acanthosis nigricans.
12. Increased hunger.