Controlling Diabetes with Exercise

February/March 2010
By Michael Castleman 
diabetes2
Image Gallery
Illustration by Nishan Akgulian
Article Tools
Print
Comments
RSS
Bookmark and Share

In a 1995 study, Japanese researchers prescribed just dietary changes for some type 2 diabetics and the same dietary changes plus walking (10,000 steps a day) for others. Compared with the controls, who made no diet or exercise changes, both the diet and diet-exercise groups lost weight and became less insulin-resistant. But the exercise group lost significantly more weight and saw their insulin resistance and blood sugar levels plummet.

In most of the studies, walking has been the activity of choice. Most experts recommend brisk walking for at least 30 minutes a day. But the type of exercise is much less important than the commitment to doing it regularly, ideally daily. Harvard researchers followed the health of more than 14,000 alumni for several decades. The more they exercised, the less likely they were to develop diabetes—even if they were overweight and had close relatives with the disease.

RELATED CONTENT

San Francisco-based writer Michael Castleman is the author of 12 consumer health books, including The New Healing Herbs (Rodale, 2001). 

Click here for the main article, Natural Ways To Treat Diabetes.

Bookmark and Share
RSS | Comments | E-mail | Print

Comments

Add Your Comment

You can use this comment form to enter your personal experiences or additional information and resources that you'd like to share with Herb Companion readers. Your helpful advice will be posted on this page.  E-mail addresses are never displayed on comments, but they are required to confirm your comments.

Line breaks and paragraphs are automatically converted — no need to use <p> or <br> tags.

New to Herb Companion?
Sign up to share comments.
Asterisks(*) indicate required fields.
Name*
Your name appears next to your comment.

E-mail Address*
This will be your login ID.

City State Zip Code

Password*


Confirm Password*

Comments
1500 character limit (Offensive materials and/or spam will be removed, no HTML allowed)
Please Note: Your sign-up must be verified via e-mail before your comment is published.
FEATURED ARTICLES
MOST POPULAR


Pay Now & Save 50% off the Cover Price
First Name: *
 Last Name: *
Address: *
 City: *
State/Province: *
 Zip/Postal Code:*
Country:
 Email:*
(* indicates a required item)
Canadian subs: 1 year, (includes postage & GST). Foreign subs: 1 year, . U.S. funds.
Canadian Subscribers - Click Here
Non US and Canadian Subscribers - Click Here

Subscribe to The Herb Companion

Your guide to the many uses and even more pleasures of nature's most helpful plants!

The Herb Companion is the smart and easy complement to your own healthy, vibrant lifestyle! In every issue you'll find information on using herbs to:

  • Transform simple dishes into spectacular meals
  • Make gardens as useful as they are beautiful
  • Replace harsh chemicals with natural alternatives
  • Help find fulfillment, balance and good health
  • And much more!

Yes, send me a one-year subscription (6 issues) to The Herb Companion. I'll pay just $19.95.

Save Even More Money By Paying NOW!

Pay now with a credit card and take advantage of our Earth-friendly automatic renewal savings plan. You save an additional $5.00 and get 6 issues of The Herb Companion for only $14.95 (USA only).