Exercise May Help Prevent Type 2 Diabetes
Exercise may help prevent against developing type 2 diabetes, according to recent research.
Published in Diabetologia [i], the 2016 study found 150 minutes of physical activity each week can reduce the risk of developing Type 2 diabetes by up to 26 per cent.
The team of researchers from the UK and Sweden reviewed 23 population studies that collectively looked at over a million people.
This risk reduction was independent of other factors like diet, age, and body mass index.
The results show the major potential for physical activity to prevent the risk of developing type 2 diabetes.
Interestingly, doubling your amount of exercise to 300 minutes a week decreased your risk of developing diabetes to 36 per cent.
In today’s increasingly busy lifestyle, five hours a week just isn’t possible for most people so it’s comforting to know that the largest gains were seen in following the bare minimum of exercise.
Diabetes is the epidemic of the 21st century and the biggest challenge confronting Australia’s health system.
Everybody benefits from regular exercise but it’s especially important if you have diabetes, or are at risk of diabetes.
Exercise helps insulin to work better, maintains a healthy weight, lowers your blood pressure, reduces your risk of heart disease and reduces stress.
Diabetes Facts [ii]
- 280 Australians develop diabetes every day. That’s one person every five minutes
- Around 1.7 million Australians have diabetes. This includes all types of diagnosed diabetes (1.2 million known and registered) as well as silent, undiagnosed type 2 diabetes (up to 500,000 estimated)
- More than 100,000 Australians have developed diabetes in the past year
- For every person diagnosed with diabetes there is usually a family member or carer who also ‘lives with diabetes’ every day in a support role. This means that an estimated 2.4 million Australians are affected by diabetes every day
- Total annual cost impact of diabetes in Australia estimated at $14.6 billion
Consult the Experts
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