A1: Blood sugar is associated with two main sources. One is absorbing from carbohydrates digested in the small intestine; the other is producing in the liver. Insulin causes the liver to store glucose as glycogen; when blood glucose concentration is lower than the normal range, glycogen is broken down into blood glucose and released into the blood; simultaneously, the liver begins to use other metabolites (lactic acid, fatty acids, and amino acids) to synthesize new glucose. When the body cannot sufficiently lower blood glucose, issues such as glucose tolerance and diabetes will occur. Note that Diagnosis of diabetes patients is commonly performed by identifying “fasting blood sugar” and “glycated hemoglobin”.

A2: The patented peptide (mcIRBP^TM-19) is discovered from the natural peptide fragments of bitter melon. It is a small molecule peptide consisting of 19 amino acids with the molecular weight of 2,162 daltons. It possesses a high affinity to insulin receptor even after passing through stomach acid; this small molecule peptide has several health benefits and can be used as a premium supplement for daily ingestion. Our studies have shown that it can stabilize the fasting blood sugar and glycated hemoglobin in humans, along with increasing muscle mass and decreasing body fat in rodents.

The complicated physiological functions of the human body rely on proteins and peptides to activate and deliver messages. Proteins and peptides are natural substances formed from the small unit of amino acids and require specific peptide sequence to interact with insulin receptor. mcIRBP^TM-19 is a plant-derived insulin peptide and is able to regulate blood sugar in the human body.

The modern diet habit (i.e., refined diets) and lack of physical activity have led to the onset of obesity, which is one of the major health challenges around the world. According to the investigation of the Health Promotion Administration, the prevalence of overweight and obese adults in Taiwan is 45.4%, and obesity is highly correlated with the development of type-II diabetes. Currently, there are no perfect treatments for diabetes, but patients have to manage the disease through medication and assertively control their diets in combination with moderate physical activities and weight management. However, most patients cannot sustain the recommend lifestyle and still ignore the importance of glucose homeostasis, which may inflicts some serious complications.

A5: Patented peptide sequence (mcIRBP^TM-19) extracted from bitter melon is the only scientifically proven natural insulin-like peptide aside from insulin. It can stabilize blood sugar, build muscle mass, and reduce the accumulation of fat.

A6: Insumate^®-related studies have been published on the five international journals. Thus, it is proved that the patented peptide sequence (mcIRBP^TM-19) can engage with the insulin receptor in the human body and open glucose channels in cell and animal models and clinical trials. The research results verified the effect of regulating blood sugar in the human body. We already accomplished two approved clinical trials for Insumate^® to improve the glucose homeostasis of subjects with the blood sugar levels of 120-140 or 160-180 mg/dL.