Insulin Making Cells Work Better with Exercise

The Scientific American reports that researchers at the University of Michigan have found that just one week of exercise resulted in significant improvement in the
function of insulin-making beta cells in people at risk of developing diabetes. The researchers, the magazine reports, had 12 sedentary
individuals aged 60 and older perform an hour-long workout
every day for a week. The exercise sessions, consisting of
stints on a treadmill, exercise bike and cross-training
machine, required study participants to work out at 60 percent
to 70 percent of their maximum heart rate capacity. After the exercise period, study participants’ sensitivity
to insulin had increased by 53 percent, on average, while a
measure of beta cell function called the disposition index had
risen by 28 percent. However there were no changes in their fat
mass, levels of fat in the blood, or other factors that might
explain the effect of exercise on beta cells.
Read more in the Scientific American.