As one of the body’s mechanisms that regulate blood sugar and naturally prevent the onset of diabetes, incretins are a key player. They’re gastrointestinal hormones that are released upon eating, even before blood sugar levels go up. They also slow down the rate at which nutrients are absorbed into the blood and may reduce food intake. In addition, they limit the amount of glucagon hormone released by the pancreas, so it doesn’t cause a blood sugar spike. Two such substances in the body are glucagon-like peptite-1 (GLP-1) and gastric inhibitory peptide (GIP), which are then “kept in check” by the dipeptidyl peptidase-4 enzyme (DPP-4). It has been found that type 2 diabetics don’t have a sufficient supply of incretins. In those cases, the presence of DPP-4 makes the situation worse. For people with diabetes, incretins must be reintroduced into the body to keep the system running correctly.
