Diabetes & Exercise Physiology

Updated: May 23

There are 3 main types of diabetes:

Type 1 Diabetes:

We don't understand why or how Type 1 diabetes occurs as it's an auto-immune disease but we understand how it affects the body.
There's a progressive destruction of the Beta cells of the pancreas and the pancreas can no longer secrete enough insulin to uptake glucose (blood sugar).
Insulin injections are required by those diagnosed with type 1 diabetes as there is no reversing damage to the cells of the pancreas (there's a dependence on insulin).

Type 2 Diabetes:

Is what we refer to as a chronic lifestyle-related disease and insulin resistance.
The pancreas produces enough insulin but the cells are no longer as sensitive to it as it once was, so the pancreas continues to produce more and more until it loses the capacity to produce enough insulin (essentially turns into type 1 diabetes but it's not due to an auto-immune disease).
Lifestyle changes (exercise and healthy diet) are advised before going onto medications such as metformin, ozempic, or insulin.

Gestational Diabetes:

Develops during pregnancy typically between the 24th and 28th week of pregnancy.
It typically resolves post child birth but women who have had gestational diabetes are at an increased risk of developing type 2 diabetes later on in life.

How is Diabetes Diagnosed?

Fasting Blood Glucose (FBG):

Measures your blood sugar levels after after not eating for an 8-12 hour period of time (a reading greater than 7mmol/L indicates diabetes).

Oral Glucose Tolerance Test (OGTT):

Measures how well the body processes sugar by checking blood sugar levels before and after a sugary drink is consumed (a glucose reading of 200 mg/dL or greater indicates diabetes).

HbA1c (blood test):

Measures the average amount of blood sugar (glucose) in your blood over the past 2-3 months.
It measures the percentage of haemoglobin that has glucose attached to it (> 6.5% indicates a diabetes diagnosis).

Common Symptoms of Diabetes Include:

Risk factors

T1D:

Family History: such as having a parent or sibling with the condition (genetic predisposition)

T2D:

Gestational Diabetes:

How Does Exercise Help?

Exercise does two main things in regards to those diagnosed with diabetes but first you need to know a couple of things:

There are proteins in the body responsible for the uptake of sugar into the muscles and fat cells.
In those with diabetes, these proteins are impaired but exercise can increase the number of these proteins thus increasing the effect of the hormone insulin.
There are non-insulin dependent pathways and insulin dependant pathways (I won't go into detail about these).

1. Improved insulin sensitivity:
- Cells in the body become more responsive to insulin which allows for more glucose (sugar) absorption into the muscles and fat cells thus reducing the amount in the bloodstream.
2. Improved blood glucose regulation:
- Muscles require energy during exercise and to do this they first use the sugar stored inside of them (glycogen).
- Once the glycogen stores are depleted, the muscles still need sugar so they take it out of the bloodstream.
- Once a bout of exercise (aerobic or resistance training) is completed, the muscles like to refuel their glycogen stores and they continue to take more sugar out of the bloodstream to fill them back up.
Overall, there's less sugar in the bloodstream which is a great thing and these benefits are both acute and chronic in nature - HOW GOOD IS EXERCISE?!

If you’re interested in learning more about how exercise can help with your diabetes or for assistance in creating an exercise program please contact Conquer Allied Health on 03 8203 2814 or email info@conqueralliedhealth.com.au

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