July 2023
Exercise may be especially beneficial for those at high genetic risk of type 2 diabetes
By Melanie Hinze
People at high genetic risk of developing type 2 diabetes have the most to benefit from moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA), new research suggests.
Published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine, the prospective cohort study included 59,325 participants from the UK Biobank (mean age 61.1 years in 2013 to 2015). The researchers collected total, and intensity-specific, physical activity data using accelerometers linked to national registries up to September 2021. They examined the dose-response association between physical activity and type 2 diabetes incidence, adjusted for, and stratified by, different levels of genetic risk.
Over a median follow up of 6.8 years, a strong linear dose-response association was seen between MVPA and incident type 2 diabetes – even after adjusting for genetic risk. However, the absolute risk-reduction from MVPA was largest among those participants with high genetic risk.
Participants who spent at least 68.4 min/day doing MVPA had a 74% lower risk of developing type 2 diabetes than those who spent less than 5.2 min/day doing MVPA.
Although more time spent exercising was associated with the greatest risk reduction, any exercise at all had a benefit.
Dr Callum Baker, Accredited Exercise Physiologist and postdoctoral fellow at The University of Sydney, said this paper robustly showed that everyone could benefit from exercise in terms of reducing their risk of developing type 2 diabetes. However, people who were at high genetic risk, had the most to gain from exercising.
‘The study showed that with between 5 and 25 minutes per day of exercise, there was a significant reduction in incident diabetes,’ he said, adding that it did not necessarily matter what type of exercise people did, although MVPA had the most benefit.
This new research showed around a 50% greater reduction in risk with MVPA than previous research. Dr Baker said this was likely due to the direct measurement of physical activity used in this study.
‘For GPs, a clinically useful tool is to have patients monitor their physical activity levels via wrist-based accelerometers, such as Fitbits or Garmin watches,’ he said. This would enable GPs to see if patients were exercising and improving exercise habits over time.
‘Additionally, referrals to allied health professionals, including exercise physiologists and diabetes educators, who can help patients exercise and find exercise that works for them may help people take up and adhere to this exercise messaging,’ he said.