Nearly 20% of patients with type 2 diabetes do not benefit from exercise

the Oncology Nurse Advisor take:

According to a new study published in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism, one in five people with type 2 diabetes mellitus do not achieve any improvement in blood sugar control when they participate in a supervised exercise regimen.

For the study, researchers analyzed data from clinical studies that investigated the use of exercise regimens in patients with type 2 diabetes. They also looked at animal and genetic studies that did the same. Results showed that about 15 to 20% of patients with type 2 diabetes did not experience improvement in blood sugar control, insulin sensitivity, or muscle mitochondrial density.

The animal and genetic studies suggest that the resistance to exercise is genetic and can be passed from one generation to the next.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that about 40% of American will develop type 2 diabetes in their lifetime. Because obesity and lack of exercise are associated with the disease, exercise is often recommended to patients with diabetes to help manage the disease.

This study shows that while most people benefit from exercise, nearly 20% of patients with type 2 diabetes do not as a result of their DNA.