Diabetics stay mobile with weight loss, fitness | Health Magazine

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People with Type 2 diabetes improved their mobility, a key predictor of living independently, when they lost weight and exercised, a U.S. study finds.

Researchers randomly assigned 5,145 overweight and obese adults to an intensive lifestyle program for weight loss or to attend a support and education group.

Being able to climb stairs is an important part of maintaining mobility. (Suzanne Plunkett/Reuters)

The result? After four years, those in the treatment group showed lower risk of loss of mobility compared with those in the control group, the researcher said.

?Weight loss and improved fitness slowed the decline in mobility in overweight adults, with Type 2 diabetes,? the study?s authors concluded.

Difficulty in bending over was a harbinger for the loss of mobility, possibly because older adults who have trouble with the movement are at risk for being sedentary, they said.

Participants filled in questionnaires about how easily they could do:

• Vigorous activity such as running and lifting heavy objects.
• Moderate activity such as pushing a vacuum cleaner, playing golf or climbing a flight of stairs.

All of the participants, men and women aged 45 to 74, were weighed every year. They had treadmill fitness tests when the study started, after one year and at the end of the four-year experiment.

When the study concluded, 38.5 per cent in the treatment group had good mobility compared with 31.9 per cent in the other group.

Weight loss was slightly more influential in preventing loss of mobility than improved fitness but both helped, the researchers said. It could be that weight loss improves the relative strength of the legs and facilities balance, which are important for fitness and mobility, they added.

The researchers acknowledged that they relied on participants to evaluate their own mobility rather than measuring it, but said the improvements were clinically relevant.

The weight loss and physical activity goals of the study are ?well within the reach? of most people, said Jack Rejeski, the study?s lead author and a professor of health and exercise science at Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, N.C.

Lifestyle changes that improve health and reduce disability have already been shown to prevent disease and provide good return on investment, the researchers said in calling for wider study.

Source: http://healthmaga.com/health/health-news/diabetics-stay-mobile-with-weight-loss-fitness/

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