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Item #3 Item Revisited: Issue 86 Jan. 9, 2002

Can Exercise Prevent Postmenopausal Diabetes?
Yes, it can, that from a large prospective long-term study.

Data from a large, prospective, long-term study suggest that postmenopausal women who are physically active have less risk of developing diabetes mellitus than women who are sedentary. According to a study published in a recent American Journal of Public Health, approximately 8% of type 2 diabetes cases in older women could be prevented with regular physical activity.

Folsom and associates analyzed questionnaires completed by 34,257 enrollees of the Iowa Women's Health Study. Subjects were ages 55 to 69 years when they completed the initial questionnaire in 1986, which was followed by four others between 1987 and 1997. The first query (taken from
a 1987 Gallup Poll) was: "Aside from any work you do at home or at a job, do you do anything regularly -- that is, on a daily basis -- that keeps you physically fit?" This was followed by questions regarding the frequency of moderate or vigorous physical activity.

Women who participated in any type of physical activity on a regular basis were 31% less likely to develop type 2 diabetes over the study period than those who were sedentary. Women who were active most frequently had the best outlook: Their risk of diabetes was approximately halved in
comparison with the least frequently active. For more info on this study:
Clinician Reviews 10(4):35-44, 2000.

FACT:

Seven thousand five hundred of 23,000 patients measured their glucose at least daily. Hemoglobin A1c in diabetics was lower than in those who monitored less frequently. American Journal of Medicine 2001 111: 1-9.

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