Blood glucose regulation: a model body over five hours, showing the pancreas, the blood, muscle and the liver beside a graph of blood glucose, for a healthy body, type 1 diabetes, type 1 diabetes treated with insulin and type 2 diabetes

Between meals, your blood sugar comes from your liver

Two hormones from the pancreas tell the liver whether to store glucose or release it, and that tug of war holds blood glucose between about 4 and 7.8 mmol/L. Break one side of the loop and the level drifts out of range. Pick a body and an event, then move the clock forward and watch blood glucose, insulin and glucagon.

Five hours in one body In range
Pick a body and an event. Move the clock. Watch the loop.
Whose body?
What happens?
1.0 h · 7.5 mmol/L
Time since start1.0 h
Blood glucose
7.5mmol/L
Liver glycogen
60%
The feedback loop right now
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    Know This

    Blood glucose stays near its set point by negative feedback: insulin lowers it and glucagon raises it, so when either signal fails the level drifts out of range.