Silent but deadly: the body's hidden organ - the pancreas

Nutrition Health Review, Spring, 2003 by Gail Gorman

In human adults, the pancreas is a flattened gland, about six to eight inches long. It is buried deep in the abdomen behind the stomach, where it connects the small intestine at the duodenum, just under the stomach. Also called the "hidden organ," the pancreas is not readily accessible and is thus difficult to examine by conventional methods. It is hidden, too, from our understanding, to a large extent.

Symptoms of a pancreatic disorder often mimic other common health problems, including simple indigestion. Little is known about the cause of such disastrous diseases as chronic pancreatitis, with as many as 40% of adult cases labeled "idiopathic," meaning of unknown origin. (1, 2) Even pancreatic cancer is not well understood; so far, the most consistently reported risk factor for tumor development is cigarette smoking. (3) We do know this type of cancer is the fifth leading cause of cancer deaths in the U.S. and around the world. It is nearly always fatal; more than 98% of patients die, and its incidence is on the rise in industrialized nations.

Diabetes is, by far, the most renowned form of pancreatic disease wherein the pancreas either does not produce sufficient insulin, or, as is sometimes the case in adult-onset diabetes, the cells of the body simply do not respond to insulin's message. Other, even more silent and potentially more deadly disorders include (1) acute and chronic pancreatitis, each often very painful; (2) cystic fibrosis, which affects pancreatic function; and (3) organ tumors, either benign or malignant.

Finally, a little-known disease in which the symptoms might sound familiar is pancreatic enzyme insufficiency. This disorder can be mistaken for indigestion, and patients experience few or no symptoms at all while it slowly robs the body of important nutrients. When the disorder is left untreated, severe malnutrition can result.

Classification

There are two types of diabetes, type (juvenile onset) and type 2 (adult onset). In type 1 diabetes, the pancreas produces insufficient or no insulin. Patients must have daily insulin injections, and they live on the balance beam between diabetic coma (too much acid in the blood from an inability to use blood sugar) and insulin shock (too much insulin taken to protect against diabetic coma).

Type 2 diabetes can actually occur at any age. The body produces plenty of insulin, but the cells have become resistant to its message. Type 2 diabetic patients are, more often than not, overweight, leading some to postulate that the constant barrage of refined carbohydrates (which release glucose into the bloodstream quickly after ingestion of table sugar or white flour) is at the heart of the disease.

Under normal circumstances, before a meal, we should have about one to two teaspoons of sugar circulating in our bloodstream. After a meal that is rich in refined carbohydrates (which break down quickly into glucose), there is a significant spike.

For example, a person might eat a hamburger with a bun, a small order of "french fries," and even a diet cola for lunch. Because of the way he digests certain foods, his blood sugar (glucose) level spikes quickly; he has just dumped as many as 12 teaspoons of sugar into his system. As a result of that burst of sugar, a healthy pancreas releases a burst of insulin, telling the body to take up the overload.

A healthy liver responds by taking up as much of the overload as it can (about 30 percent for short-term storage). Another 30 percent is used immediately as energy. The rest of it (up to 70 percent, depending on the actual amount taken up by the liver) is stored as fat. You might recognize that feeling of a temporary burst of energy, accompanied by feeling really good, followed by a marked decline and usually a mild case of "the blues." (4)

As a result of chemical reactions, including the fact that our brains need blood sugar to function, the body and the brain signal for more food, and we crave, in particular, carbohydrates having a high glycemic index. Our body receives a "signal" to obtain more sugar immediately. About halfway through the afternoon, we might find ourselves picking away at just half that candy bar we saved. A quick sugar spike, an immediate insulin spike, and more frantic messages to take up that sugar.

Just for a moment, imagine a friend or a loved one who constantly barrages you with frantic demands, such as "Quick, do this," or "Hurry up, do that!" Perhaps this will give you an idea of why our bodies begin to turn a deaf ear to the constant insulin scream that we subject ourselves to by eating a diet tilted toward carbohydrates, especially highly refined carbohydrates.

The "good" carbohydrates are low on the glycemic index; they release glucose more slowly, and spikes are avoided. "Bad" carbohydrates are high on the glycemic index and create spikes.

Pancreatitis

Other well-documented pancreatic disorders are acute and chronic pancreatitis. Acute pancreatitis occurs when the gland becomes quickly and severely inflamed. The major causes of pancreatitis are (5):