Aerobic exercise for 45 minutes after meals effectively lowers blood sugar levels, unravels study

A new study by Yan-Yan QI and team found moderate-intensity aerobic exercise in individuals with type 2 diabetes performed 45 minutes after meals to be more effective than exercise performed 90 minutes after meals in lowering blood glucose levels and minimizing swings. The findings were published in The Journal of Sports Medicine and Physical Fitness.

Exercise has shown in several studies to have positive effects on postprandial blood glucose regulation. The importance of postprandial exercise for people with type 2 diabetes (T2D) has been emphasized by the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM), which suggests at least 45 minutes of any kind of activity, at any intensity, following meals to enhance postprandial glucose response. Thus, this study was to evaluate the effects of moderate-intensity aerobic exercise on blood glucose levels and variations in people diagnosed with type 2 diabetes mellitus when it is performed 45 and 90 minutes after a meal.

A total of 22 T2DM patients on oral hypoglycemic medication were enrolled and randomly assigned to one of two groups where one group underwent the 45-minute postprandial exercise and the other performed the 90-minute postprandial exercise. After breakfast, both groups worked out on a moderate-intensity aerobic stationary cycle for 30 minutes. There were two phases to this aerobic exercise program, and the groups alternated between exercise times after the first phase. The blood glucose levels and variations in the subjects were assessed using continuous glucose monitoring (CGM).

The study found that the 45-minute postprandial exercise group had a decrease in blood glucose levels after breakfast as well as an overall day blood glucose level and an area beneath the curve for blood glucose following breakfast when compared to the 90-minute postprandial exercise group. The 45-minute postprandial exercise group showed more time spent under the target glucose range and less time over the goal range.

Also, there were differences between the 45-minute and 90-minute postprandial exercise groups in terms of standard deviation, mean amplitude of glycemic excursions, largest amplitude of glycemic excursions, postprandial glucose excursion for breakfast, duration of elevated glucose levels and peak postprandial glucose levels.

Overall, moderately intense aerobic exercise spanning 45 minutes after meals was shown to be more effective in lowering blood glucose levels and minimizing swings in T2DM patients than exercising 90 minutes after meals. 

Reference:

QI, Y.-Y., ZHENG, X., BI, L.-N., HU, S., LI, C., ZHANG, Y., SHI, W.-L., YUE, Y.-J., & LI, Q. (2024). Effects of postprandial exercise timing on blood glucose and fluctuations in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus. In The Journal of Sports Medicine and Physical Fitness. Edizioni Minerva Medica. https://doi.org/10.23736/s0022-4707.24.16076-8