Although moderate to vigorous exercise, 150 minutes a week is strongly recommended as part of a type 2 diabetes treatment, 90 percent of healthy people do not adhere to such guidelines.
Are you a diabetic who doesn’t like to exercise? Well then, I have some good news for you. In a new study published in Diabetologia, researchers argue that a ‘Sit Less’ agenda – interrupting long stretches of sitting with standing and light-intensity walking – may be more potent than structured exercise to promote blood sugar control in patients with type 2 diabetes, providing both improved glycemic control and improved insulin sensitivity.
Although moderate to vigorous exercise, 150 minutes a week is strongly recommended as part of a type 2 diabetes treatment, 90 percent of healthy people do not adhere to such guidelines. That’s why replacing sitting with standing and walking time provide a valuable exercise alternative for patients with type 2 diabetes, particularly when muscle weakness and peripheral neuropathy make exercise challenging.
“In this study, we observed that the Sit-Less regimen improved insulin sensitivity, mean 24-hour glucose levels, 24-hour glucose excursions, duration of hyperglycemia and fasting triacylglycerol levels,” noted Bernard MFM. Duvivier, MD, of the CARIM School for Cardiovascular Diseases, Maastricht University Medical Center, in the Netherlands.
The study involved 13 men and 6 women with type 2 diabetes. Their average age was 63 and the mean BMI was 30.5 kg/m2, just within the definition of obese. The participants followed three, four-day activity regimens that included: sitting, exercise and a sit less protocol. During the four-day sitting regimen participants were restricted to 1 hour/day of walking and 1 hour/day standing, while the remainder of their waking time was spent sitting. During the exercise regimen approximately an hour of sitting time was replaced by supervised cycling, in 20 minute bouts separated by 5 minutes rest. In the sit less regimen, five hours of sitting were substituted with 2 hours walking and 3 hours standing grabbed in small bouts throughout the day.
Previously, researchers have noted that replacing sitting time with standing and light-intensity walking in free-living conditions was also more efficient than a single daily session of moderate exercise at improving insulin sensitivity, even in the absence of diabetes. The data concludes that sitting has a negative effect on insulin sensitivity independent of energy expenditure, suggesting that one bout of exercise probably cannot fully compensate for the negative effects of sitting for the vast majority of the day.
Strategies to reduce the amount of time a person spends sitting are considered less demanding than structured exercise programs. The authors of the study suggest that their findings provide indications that indicate breaking-up of sitting time over interventions involving structured exercise is a better alternative.
It has been noted that a sedentary (inactive) lifestyle is associated with an increased risk of type 2 diabetes and that regular interruption of sitting using small bouts of walking may be beneficial to insulin action and glucose control. This study, however, is the first to consider the effects of a sit less regimen for people with type 2 diabetes in free-living conditions. The outcome of the study fits the emerging picture that breaking up sedentary behavior by light-intensity activities may be a potent way to help improve blood glucose control.
Researchers believe what is needed now are long-term studies to determine just how much low-intensity activity is realistic. Numerous population-based studies suggest that adults spend more than half of their day in a sitting position. Observational studies suggest that there are”associations between the time spent sitting and markers of metabolic disturbance. So stand up and walk around.
