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A hospital patient was tested for diabetes - Edexcel - GCSE Biology Combined Science - Question 5 - 2021 - Paper 1
Question 5
A hospital patient was tested for diabetes. A nurse recorded his mass and height. Figure 7 shows these measurements. mass in kg height in metres 124 ... show full transcript
Worked Solution & Example Answer:A hospital patient was tested for diabetes - Edexcel - GCSE Biology Combined Science - Question 5 - 2021 - Paper 1
Step 1
Step 2
Describe the trends shown in this data.
Answer
The blood glucose concentration data shows a few notable trends:
- From 0 to 4 hours, the glucose concentration increases from 100 mg/dL to 131 mg/dL.
- The concentration continues to rise slightly from 4 to 8 hours, reaching 139 mg/dL.
- However, from 8 hours onward, the glucose concentration decreases significantly to 90 mg/dL at 12 hours.
- After 12 hours, there is a slight increase again, with values at 16, 20, and 24 hours recorded as 92, 134, and 137 mg/dL respectively, indicating fluctuations in glucose levels during these later hours.
Step 3
Explain why the blood glucose concentration of this patient remained high from 4 hours to 8 hours.
Answer
The blood glucose concentration remained high from 4 to 8 hours likely due to the body's impaired ability to regulate glucose levels, characteristic of type 2 diabetes. During this period, despite potential insulin production, the cells may not be responding effectively to insulin, resulting in sustained elevated glucose levels. Additionally, the intake of carbohydrates prior to these measurements could contribute to the higher readings.
Step 4
Explain how the data in Figure 8 shows that this exercise occurred after 8 hours but before 12 hours.
Answer
The data in Figure 8 indicates an exercise period likely occurred between 8 and 12 hours based on the blood glucose concentration drop. At 8 hours, the glucose level was at its peak at 139 mg/dL. By 12 hours, it had significantly decreased to 90 mg/dL. This rapid decline suggests the patient engaged in physical activity, which typically lowers blood glucose levels by increasing glucose uptake by muscle cells, thus indicating that exercise happened during this time frame.