NEW YORK (Reuters Health) – For active diabetics, moderate-intensity exercise, such as light continuous jogging or cycling, poses a greater risk of low blood sugar (hypoglycemia) than intermittent high-intensity exercise representative of the activity patterns of team and field sports, such as soccer or hockey, research shows.
“Our finding has implications for safe participation in exercise by individuals with type 1 diabetes,” Dr. Kym J. Guelfi, who led the study, told Reuters Health.
The observation is important, Guelfi and colleagues from the University of Western Australia note the journal Diabetes Care, “since many individuals with type 1 diabetes are discouraged from engaging in vigorous exercise because of a fear of exercise-induced hypoglycemia.”
The researchers analyzed the response of blood sugar and hormones involved in the regulation of blood sugar on two separate occasions during which seven healthy young type 1 diabetics performed a moderate-intensity or intermittent high-intensity exercise program for 30 minutes.
