Exercise tied to decreased diabetes risk among high-risk women

By Andrew M. Seaman NEW YORK (Reuters Health) – Women who become diabetic during pregnancy may be able to avoid later developing type 2 diabetes with exercise, according to a new U.S. study. Among women who had so-called gestational diabetes, those who upped their exercise by a little more than 20 minutes a day after giving birth had half the longer-term diabetes risk of women who didn’t change their activity levels. “This is kind of a hopeful message because they may think they are at a high risk of type 2 diabetes, but this shows they shouldn’t give up,” Dr. Cuilin Zhang said. Women – especially those who are older, heavier and not white – are at risk of developing gestational diabetes, because of changes in the body during pregnancy.