Di-a -betes the odds

The outbreak of obesity and type two diabetes is a huge issue especially here in the United States. Between the so called "western diet" and just plain lack of activity there has been a struggle to fix this problem. My focus is exercise and its ability to lower/stabilize glucose levels.

Can exercise really lower glucose levels?

The studies and research shows that there is without a doubt evidence supporting exercise lowering glucose levels as well as stabilizing them. According to Annals of Internal Medicine "Current guidelines … suggest that increasing exercise intensity provides additional benefit depending on the targeted health outcome" (Robert et al., 2015). These current guidelines are based on the “75 minutes of weekly high-intensity exercise is equivalent to 150 minutes of weekly lower-intensity exercise”(Robert et al., 2015). This is set as a standard to see improvement and or maintain your fitness. They found that with these guidelines and if followed well that you would see a leveling out and lowering of glucose levels. There is a whole lot of research on glucose levels and exercise and all that I have found is in favor of exercise lowering glucose levels. If we could get American’s to even get up and walk or take the stairs daily there would be great improvements in glucose levels. This shows that type two diabetes, a disease based on health, is definitely able to control, maybe even reverse.

Another study which was not geared toward American obesity but showed similar results with exercise shows that even in those who are already active and have type two diabetes can still see results in glucose levels with the use of exercise that follows guidelines.  This study was for African males who were already walking around an hour a day. The study this was shown in was a study done by Yan et al with research focused on this group specifically.  

You may be wondering what is glucose, what is normal and how do I know?

According to Webmd “A normal glucose (sugar) level is less than 100 mg/dL after not eating for at least 8 hours. And it's less than 140 mg/dL 2 hours after eating. During the day, levels tend to be at their lowest just before meals. For most people without diabetes, blood sugar levels before meals hover around 70 to 80 mg/dL” As stated above glucose is the levels of sugar in the blood. They tend to be looked at after you haven’t eaten for 8 hours or 2 hours after you have eaten.  These levels are obtained by drawing blood and testing them.

The studies and research show that these glucose levels as stated above can be stabilized and even lowered in many cases. This is possible even in those who are physically active. The thing to remember is however, is that you will not see improvement if you are not doing it correctly. You need to follow the guidelines as listed above for the intensity of activity you are engaging in and be aware of what you levels are. It was not mentioned how fast you would see improvement just that improvement is possible and for those individuals with uncontrolled sugar levels this could greatly help you. This could greatly help America if taken seriously.  The health of America could be greatly changed with a little added exercise.

Reference:

Diabetes Sugar Levels: How High Glucose Levels Affect Your Body. (n.d.). Retrieved April 3, 2015,from http://www.webmd.com/diabetes/how-sugar-affects-diabetes

Huimin, Y., Prista, A., Ranadive, S. M., Damasceno, A., Caupers, P., Kanaley, J. A., & Fernhall, B. (2014). Effect of Aerobic Training on Glucose Control and Blood Pressure in T2DDM East African Males. ISRN Otolaryngology, 1-6. doi:10.1155/2014/864897

Ross, R., Hudson, R., Stotz, P. J., & Miu, L. (2015). Effects of Exercise Amount and Intensity on Abdominal Obesity and Glucose Tolerance in Obese Adults. Annals Of Internal Medicine, 162(5), 325-334. doi:10.7326/M14-1189