Effect of a long-term regular physical activity on hypertension and body mass index in type 2 diabetes patients

Hypertension and overweight are prevalent problems in type 2 diabetic patients. The purpose of this study was to assess the effects of long term regular aerobic exercise training on blood pressure (BP) as well as body mass index (BMI) in type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM).

In a randomized, controlled trial, 60 patients with T2DM aged 40-65 years were randomly divided in two groups (30 subjects in exercise group and 30 subjects in control group). Supervised exercise program was performed three times per week for 3 years. Finally, 28 patients who completed the optimal sessions, entered in statistical analysis.

Systolic and diastolic blood pressure (SBP, DBP) had no significant changes in control group (respectively 127.48±12.79 to 129.28±8.52 and 78.90±8.06 to 77.55±5.95). These changes were statistically significant in the exercise group (respectively 132.57±14.82 to 118.00±12.48 and 82.89±9.19 to 74.00±6.57; P<0.001). Furthermore, the BMI of exercise group reduced significantly (28±5.26 to 26.42±4.36; P<0.001) in comparison with control group that showed a significant increase in terms of this variable (30.02±4.79 to 31.05±4.84; P<0.05).

The present study suggests that long term aerobic exercise has positive effects on systolic and diastolic blood pressure as well as heart rate of T2DM patients. We observed significant differences in levels of BMI in two groups after intervention.