Walking and Diabetes

From bethpagenewsgram.com

Most of us wish for an easy fix for our health issues — a magic pill to lose weight or a magic way to cook vegetables that we love.

And then along comes a study, published in the February 2022 issue of the journal Diabetes Care, that finds we can walk to prevent diabetes. The study found that the more steps you take, and the more intensely you walk, the lower your odds of getting Type 2 diabetes.

Researchers at the University of California, San Diego and San Diego State University studied more than 4,800 participants who were women aged 65 and older. None had diabetes. All lived independently.

Participants wore a device on their hip that recorded the number of steps they took 24 hours a day for a week. Participants’ health was monitored for up to seven years. Of the 4,800 women, 8% developed diabetes during that time.

On average, participants took 3,729 steps per day, of which 1,875 were light-intensity steps and 1,854 were vigorous-intensity steps (steps that cause you to breathe a little heavier). Researchers said that for every 1,000 steps participants took per day, results showed a 6% lower diabetes risk. If older adults were to take 2,000 more steps every day (in addition to what they were already doing), they might expect a 12% reduction in diabetes risk, according to study co-author Alexis Garduno in a UCSD news release.

Here’s the bottom line: If 500,000 older individuals who are newly diagnosed with diabetes every year would increase their steps by 2,000 per day and the 12% figure is correct, Garduno said 60,000 people each year would not suffer from diabetes. 

This study goes along with a recommendation from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services for at least 150 minutes of moderate to vigorous physical activity per week; once you’ve started walking, keep it up daily.

https://www.bethpagenewsgram.com/articles/walking-and-diabetes/