Diabetes mellitus tipo 2 e nível de atividade física em adultos e idosos: uma revisão sistemática

Abstract

Type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM2) results from the combination of resistance to the action of insulin and dysfunction of pancreatic beta cells. It occurs over a long modifiable period of time, going through stages that are called reduced glucose tolerance and altered fasting glycemia (SBD, 2012). It is the form present in 90 to 95% of cases of this disease, with the majority of patients being overweight or obese and generally diagnosed after 40 years of age. The studies analyzed that demonstrated the practice of physical activity as protection against DM2 corroborate the findings in the literature on physiological benefits. As a modifiable, non-pharmacological and low-cost risk factor, it should therefore be encouraged by health professionals as a form of primary prevention of DM and in the control and prevention of associated co-morbidities. Despite only 50% of the studies analyzed having found an association, the methodological limitations of the others and the difficulty of comparing them, it cannot be said that research on the association between the practice of physical activity in individuals with DM2 is not important, as since the benefits are well described in the literature. It is necessary to carry out more research on the subject, with a bias-free design, in order to demonstrate the protection of physical activity against DM2.