Research suggests a new strategy for people with type 1 diabetes to lower blood sugar after exercise

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Posted on 10/16/2024 7:51:16 PM PDT by ConservativeMind

Adults with type 1 diabetes should perform aerobic cooldowns to manage high blood sugar after intense exercise where glucose levels might rise, according to current guidelines for managing the disease. However, this recommendation has never been empirically tested—and recent research from could offer a better solution.

Reid McClure led a study to address that knowledge gap.

McClure did all the data collection for the project, which was his master's thesis. Researchers found that while an aerobic cooldown can reduce glucose levels right after exercising, the effect doesn't last long, so it's not an ideal standalone solution for hyperglycemia management.

In most people's bodies, there's a constant flux of two hormones called insulin and glucagon. Insulin brings glucose levels down and stores it in the body's cells, while glucagon retrieves it from the liver.

Researchers compared the changes in participants' blood glucose levels during the two sessions, and also tracked the outcomes on participants' continuous glucose monitor devices over 24 hours after the exercise sessions.

They found that an aerobic exercise cooldown after a workout doesn't lower glucose for long—meaning it isn't an ideal standalone solution for managing hyperglycemia.

However, correcting exercise-induced hyperglycemia solely with an insulin dose isn't the best solution either—it can be challenging to determine the exact dose needed since the glucose spike is not from something easily quantifiable, like consuming too many carbohydrates.

"It's high from everything else that's going on metabolically, and you don't know how sensitive you are to that insulin after exercise, so it's a bit less predictable," Yardley explains.

The researchers propose that the most effective management strategy for hyperglycemia in people with type 1 diabetes may be pairing an aerobic cooldown with a small dose of insulin to harness the best of both strategies.

(Excerpt) Read more at medicalxpress.com ...

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Type 1 diabetics may do best with both a cooldown time and a little insulin, after a workout.

To: Mazey; ckilmer; goodnesswins; Jane Long; BusterDog; jy8z; ProtectOurFreedom; matthew fuller; ...

2 posted on 10/16/2024 7:52:01 PM PDT by ConservativeMind (Trump: Befuddling Democrats, Republicans, and the Media for the benefit of the US and all mankind.)

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