Moderate exercise helps type 2 diabetics avoid cardiovascular problems

Indianapolis, September 26: Moderate aerobic exercise combined with light weight lifting may help lower liver fat levels in patients with type 2 diabetesdefine by up to 40 percent, results of a new study suggest.

High liver fat levels, a condition common in type 2 diabetics, enhances a patient’s risk for cardiovascular complications, the study presented at the annual meeting of the American Association of Cardiovascular and Pulmonarydefine Rehabilitation, in Indianapolis, highlights.

The study conducted at the Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center in Baltimore enrolled 77 men and women, all diabetics.

Participants were randomly divided into two groups. For six months, participants in the first group were put through a moderate aerobic exercise program consisting of 45-minute sessions three times a week along with 20 minutes of stacked weight lifting three times per week. The other group was instructed to avoid formal aerobic and gym workouts.

Using Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRIdefine) scans researchers measured liver fat (hepatic fat) levels, both at baseline and upon study completion.

While the active group reported lower levels of liver fat by the end of the study, the levels remained the same in the non-exercise group - 5.6 percent and 8.5 percent, respectively.

Overall, the active group reported a better sense of well-being. Their peak oxygen uptake levels was 13 percent higher during tread mill tests; had a 7 percent increased muscle mass; had a 6 percent lower body weight with a 2 inch smaller waistline, as compared to the non-exercise group.

"The benefits in improved fitness and fatness are clear, and physicians should really have all people with type 2 diabetesdefine actively engaged in an exercise program," Kerry J. Stewart, professor of medicine at Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center noted.

"People with type 2 diabetes have added reason to be active and to exercise, not just because it is good for health, but also because our study results pinpoint a key benefit to trimming the fatty liver that complicates their illness and which could accelerate heart disease and liver failure," he added.

Type 2 Diabetes, a metabolic disorder that is primarily characterized by insulindefine resistance usually affects adults over 40. An estimated 14 million Americans suffer from type 2 diabetes, and the majority is either overweight or obese.