Diabetes is a condition that impairs your body's ability to properly metabolize sugar. Type 1 diabetes compromises your body's ability to produce insulin. Type 2 diabetes impairs your body's ability to use insulin, causing symptoms such as increased thirst, frequent urination, extreme hunger and fatigue, MayoClinic.com explains. A 1988 study published in "The Journal of Nuclear Medicine" found that an intravenous ribose infusion of 3.3 mg/kg/min at 1.0 ml/minute for 30 minutes caused blood sugar levels in to drop from 101 mg/dL (milligrams per deciliter) to 87.2 mg/dL.
Diabetes Complications
Diabetes causes complications such as cardiovascular disease and nerve damage unless properly managed, MayoClinic.com explains. This means your risk of developing stroke, atherosclerosis and coronary artery disease is increased by diabetes. Neuropathy causes a tingling or burning sensation, numbness or pain that typically starts at your fingertips and toes and gradually spreads upward. Other diabetes complications include kidney and eye damage. Diabetes also elevates your risk of developing Alzheimer's disease and cancer.
Ribose Dose and Safety
The common dose for ribose sports supplements is between 1 g per day to 10 g per day, the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center says. Higher ribose doses such as 15 g given four times for three days have been used for research purposes. Ribose use has been associated with side effects such as diarrhea, stomach upset and headaches. However, safety studies involving humans are necessary to better establish the adverse reactions and tolerable upper limits associated with ribose.
Ribose, Blood Sugar and Insulin
The "Klinische Wochenschrift" published a study in its 1991 issue that found that an oral ribose dose of 166.7 mg/kg/hour caused blood insulin levels to increase from 8.4 mcU/mL to 10.4 mcU/mL The study involved the use of nine healthy test subjects that received ribose doses ranging from 83.3 mg/kg to 222.2 mg/kg every hour for at least four hours. Blood sugar and insulin levels were monitored. The study also determined that the same ribose dose administered orally or intravenously caused a decrease in blood sugar levels. Intravenously administered ribose did not significantly increase insulin levels unlike the orally administered dose. The study concluded that increased blood insulin levels were not responsible for the drop in blood sugar levels. Moreover, the findings suggest that the ribose dose was what caused the decline in blood sugar levels.
Ribose and Blood Sugar Levels
A study featured in a 1997 issue of "The Journal of Nuclear Medicine" determined that the blood sugar levels of eight animal test subjects fell to 87.2 mg/dL an hour after an intravenous infusion of ribose was given to them. The study used 17 animals as test subjects and divided them into an experimental and control group. The experimental group received ribose intravenously, while the control group received a normal saline infusion. An hour after the saline solution was administered the blood sugar level of the nine test subjects returned to its preinfusion level of 92.2 mg/dL. The findings suggest the potential use of ribose in helping diabetics control their blood sugar levels. More research will provide more conclusive data to ascertain the feasibility of such an application.
References
- "Klinische Wochenschrift"; Serum Levels of Glucose, Insulin, and C-peptide During Long-Term D-ribose Administration in Man; Janaury 1991
- Mayo Clinic; Diabetes; March 2011
- "The Journal of Nuclear Medicine"; Effect of Ribose on Thallium-201 Myocardial Redistribution; Angello, D et al.; 1988
- University of Pittsburgh Medical Center; Ribose; August 2011
