Not all people with type 2 diabetes benefit from exercise

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DIABETES DIGEST – Nov. 20, 2014 – If you have been diagnosed with type 2 diabetes and exercise regularly but see no improvement in your blood sugar control, you are not alone. 

A study in the current issue of the Endocrine Society's Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism shows that as many as 20 percent of people with type 2 diabetes do not see any improvement in blood sugar management even when they take part in supervised exercise.

The researchers led by Lauren Marie Sparks, PhD, of Florida Hospital and the Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute in Orlando, FL. reviewed data from clinical studies of people with type 2 diabetes who participated in exercise regimens, as well as animal and genetic studies in an effort to determine what role genetics may play in whether someone with type 2 diabetes can improve blood sugar control from exercise. 

They found that around 15 percent to 20 percent of individuals with Type 2 diabetes did not see any improvement in their blood sugar control, insulin sensitivity or a measurement of fat-burning capabilities called muscle mitochondrial density. Genetic and animal studies indicate this resistance to exercise is encoded in DNA and can be handed down through generations.

"More research is needed to determine which people with or at risk of developing Type 2 diabetes will respond to an exercise program and which will not," Sparks said in a press release. "Genetic and epigenetic patterns could hold the key to differentiating between the two groups. With that information in hand, we can target specific interventions and treatments to the individuals who will benefit most and identify novel treatment approaches to help those who do not respond to exercise."

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