• Exercise for Non-Insulin-Dependent Diabetics

If you are a non insulin dependent diabetic and are overweight, your main goal will probably be to lose weight through exercise. According to the American Diabetes Association, "Losing weight usually results in a dramatic reversal of diabetes and prevents many serious complications of diabetes." The following table shows approximately how many calories are used up during various types of exercise.

Scientists say that the cells of obese people may have only half as many insulin receptors as those of slender people. With fewer insulin receptors their cells are not able to respond adequately to the amount of insulin in their system, and the blood sugar rises. Losing weight has been known to increase the number of these receptors. Losing weight removes the stress that obesity imposes on the beta cells in the pancreas (the cells that make insulin) because with an increased number of receptor sites less insulin is needed and less is produced. If you are overweight, the longer you remain overweight, the more strain these cells are under, until eventually they may actually shut down completely. Even if you don't lose weight, exercise can increase the sensitivity of your insulin receptors to insulin, which in turn can reduce the stress placed on the beta cells.