According to a study, how quickly you walk can affect your blood sugar levels. Numerous studies have been conducted regarding the advantages of walking for health, particularly brisk walking. According to a recent study, walking more quickly can actually control your blood sugar levels and reduce your chance of developing type 2 diabetes.
India is the world’s center for type 2 diabetes, one of the major health risks. According to a study conducted this year by the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), 136 million Indians are prediabetic and over 100 million suffer from this lifestyle disorder.
When someone has type 2 diabetes, their body either doesn’t use the insulin they do produce for energy or is unable to produce enough of it.
Increased thirst, frequent urination, hunger, exhaustion, and blurred vision are some of the symptoms. Sometimes there might not be any symptoms at all.
Treatments for it include diet management, exercise, medication, and insulin therapy. It is reversible despite being a chronic, progressive illness.
Although walking has been demonstrated to lower the risk of type 2 diabetes, the new study places a strong emphasis on the intensity of this exercise.
The British Journal of Sports Medicine published the study’s findings on November 28. The researchers discovered that walking quickly can reduce diabetes risk by 40%.
During the period of 1999 to 2022, ten prior studies were reviewed by the study authors. They evaluated the relationships between walking speed and the onset of type 2 diabetes in adult Japanese, British, and American participants.
Walking at a relaxed or leisurely pace was defined as less than 3.2 km/h.
The range of 3.2 to 4.8 kilometers per hour was considered a standard or typical speed. “Fairly brisk” speed was defined as 4.8 to 6.4 kilometers per hour.
A “brisk/striding” walking pace was more than 6.4 km/h. A 9% lower risk of contracting the illness was associated with each kilometer of walking faster than brisk.
The results of the study support the notion that diabetes prevention requires intensity.
Walking over six kilometers per hour reduced the risk of developing the condition by thirty-nine percent.
“While current strategies to increase total walking time are beneficial, it may also be reasonable to encourage people to walk at faster speeds to further increase the health benefits of walking,” researchers stated.
