Effect of Physical Activity on Metabolic Syndrome Markers in Adults with Type 2 Diabetes

Australia: Aerobic exercise can improve waist circumference (WC) in patients with type 2 diabetes (T2DM) and metabolic syndrome (MetS), a meta-analysis has shown. However, resistance and aerobic exercise failed to produce significant differences in the remaining MetS markers.

"Aerobic exercise interventions affect waist circumference," the researchers wrote in their study published in the MDPI journal Sports. "However, we did not observe any statistically significant change for other MetS markers for aerobic or resistance exercise interventions."

Type 2 diabetes patients are at an elevated risk of developing MetS than those without diabetes. MetS presence in T2DM patients is associated with high mortality.

Intervention programs to control MetS in T2DM patients are an urgent priority. Physical activity (PA) has been identified as an essential component of type 2 diabetes management. Several exercise types (e.g., resistance training and aerobics) can help achieve positive health outcomes, including reduced episodes of insulin sensitivity, hyperglycemia, and improved BMI. However, there is no proper documentation of the effectiveness of PA intervention for reducing MetS markers in people with T2D.

To fill this knowledge gap, Mohammed Amin, Deakin University, Burwood, VIC, Australia, and colleagues aimed to evaluate the effect of physical activity on markers of metabolic syndrome (waist circumference, fasting blood glucose, high-density lipoprotein, triglyceride, and blood pressure) in type 2 diabetes patients in a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials (RCTs).

For this purpose, the researchers searched the relevant databases up to August 2022. The review included 26 randomized controlled trials comprising 3300 participants diagnosed with type 2 diabetes. Primary endpoints were changes in MetS markers (waist circumference, fasting blood sugar, high-density lipoprotein, triglyceride, and blood pressure) after an exercise intervention.

Key findings of the study:

• Aerobic exercise significantly affected waist circumference (Mean Difference: −0.34 cm).
• The effect sizes on blood pressure, triglyceride, high-density lipoprotein, and fasting blood sugar were insignificant.
• No significant differences were found between the exercise and control group following resistance training.

"Our finding that aerobics exercise improves waist circumference in type 2 diabetes patients is comparable to a study among healthy adults with MetS in which aerobic training led to significant improvements in WC (−3.4 cm)," the research team wrote. "Though our current study showed a relatively small difference of means (2.29 cm), a significant improvement in WC was seen."

"Larger and higher-quality studies are needed to determine the full effects of PA on MetS markers in this population," they concluded.

Reference:

Amin, M., Kerr, D., Atiase, Y., Aldwikat, R. K., & Driscoll, A. (2023). Effect of Physical Activity on Metabolic Syndrome Markers in Adults with Type 2 Diabetes: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Sports, 11(5), 101. https://doi.org/10.3390/sports11050101