Taking regular breaks from sitting throughout the day to go on short walks — a concept researchers have nicknamed “activity snacks” — is linked to improved blood pressure and blood glucose levels, according to a new study published in the journal Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise.
Past studies have shown that breaking up sedentary periods in your day — especially by being physically active — may be beneficial in a number of ways. Sedentary time is linked to health risks that include a higher risk for stroke in less active adults, and a higher risk for developing foot ulcers in certain people with diabetes. A higher daily step count, on the other hand, is linked to a lower risk of developing type 2 diabetes, and short bursts of activity have been shown to help promote longevity. While longer periods of planned physical activity are without a doubt beneficial, for some people, it’s more feasible to sneak in shorter periods of exercise throughout the day.
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For the latest study, researchers recruited 11 participants — all of them middle-aged adults, with an average age of about 57 — who were assigned to follow different patterns of sedentary time broken up by walking breaks. On five separate days, and in randomly assigned order, participants either sat for a full eight hours without any significant walking breaks, walked for one minute every 30 minutes, walked for five minutes every 30 minutes, walked for one minute every 60 minutes, or walked for five minutes every 60 minutes — all for a total of eight hours. During each scheduled break, participants walked at a light intensity — nothing that would qualify as a short, intense burst of activity that previous studies have found to be beneficial.
Improved blood glucose, pressure linked to walking breaks
Participants all wore a continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) system, and had their blood pressure taken each hour (before scheduled walking breaks) during each eight-hour study period. Looking at participants’ overall glucose levels (known as “area under the curve”), the researchers found that participants’ glucose response improved only on the day with the greatest physical activity, with five-minute walking breaks every 30 minutes. That day also yielded one of the two greatest reductions in systolic blood pressure (the “top number” measured during heartbeats) — a drop of 4.3 mmHg, with a drop of 5.2 mmHg seen on the day of one-minute walking breaks every 60 minutes. Significant improvement in systolic blood pressure, compared with the fully sedentary day, was seen on all four days with walking breaks.
As noted in an article on the study at Medscape, on the day that participants walked for five minutes every 30 minutes, their blood glucose spike after eating was 58% lower, on average, than on the fully sedentary day — a benefit that’s roughly equivalent to what you’d expect to see from taking a glucose-lowering drug for diabetes. So for people with diabetes, this study suggests, the benefits of taking frequent breaks from sitting to engage in light physical activity may be especially important.
Want to learn more about exercising with diabetes? Read “Add Movement to Your Life,” “Exercise for Beginners,” and “Seven Ways to Have Fun Exercising.”