Short-term vibrotherapy lowers glucose levels in older women, both healthy and with type 2 diabetes

In type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) the key pathologic factor is the persistence of high blood glucose which causes high blood insulin – the hormone responsible for glucose lowering. This leads to a decrease in insulin sensitivity (insulin resistance). In the prevention and treatment of T2DM, the most important factor is ensuring proper physical activity. Unfortunately, due to poor physical condition, especially in elderly, most patients do not exercise regularly. Whole-body vibration training (WBV) seems to be a good solution here, as far as it acts as a passive substitute for physical activity and can improve glucose metabolism in patients with diabetes. Therefore, the aim of the presented study by Brazilian scientists from the Federal University of Pernambuco was to determine the effect of a single WBV session on glucose levels in elderly patients with T2DM compared to healthy people.

• After one WBV session, the level of glycaemia decreased significantly (fig. 1), both in the control group (healthy women) and in the group of women with T2DM. In the control group: from 97.5 to 84.5 mg/dl; in the group of T2DM women: from 125.5 to 92.5 (to the level not statistically significantly different from the control).
• After a single WBV session, both groups of women significantly increased lactate production, similarly to what can be seen after conventional exercise.

Prepared on the basis of:

Acute Whole Body Vibration Decreases the Glucose Levels in Elderly Diabetic Women. Pessoa MF, de Souza HCM, da Silva APV et al. Rehabil Res Pract. 2018 Jun 5;2018:3820615.

Study population

29 sedentary women aged 60 to 74 participated in the study. Fourteen women were diagnosed with T2DM for at least 2 years; fifteen were healthy (control group) without self-reported diseases.

Test procedure

After assessing the baseline parameters, all women completed a 14-minute WBV session consisting of 10 cycles of 2 minutes each, separated by 30-second breaks.

Use of vibration in the study

The WBV was performed on the MY3 Power Plate® three-axis platform. The vibration frequency was 35 Hz, amplitude: 4 mm. The women stood on the platform barefoot in a static semi-squat (knees bent, angle 120 °).

Results

Before training, healthy women and women with T2DM were homogeneous with each other in terms of the parameters tested, except, as expected, the level of glycaemia, which was higher in the T2DM group.

After the WBV session, blood glucose levels dropped significantly in both groups of women. In the control group from 97.5 to 84.5 mg/dl (p < 0.05), in the T2DM group from 125.5 to 92.5 (p < 0.05). After WBV, the level of blood glucose was not statistically significantly different between the group of healthy women and those with T2DM (p = 0.13).

Moreover, after the WBV session, the production of lactate in both groups of women significantly increased. In the control group, 2.9 times, and in the group of patients with T2DM to a slightly lesser extent, i.e. 2.4 times (p = 0.03).

Comment

The presented study revealed that short-term WBV can affect the blood glucose concentration in elderly women, both healthy and T2DM patients. In addition, after WBV, as with any type of exercise, lactate levels rose.

The presented results suggest that WBV training in T2DM has a beneficial effect on glucose control even after just one session, which may be especially important when planning exercises for elderly people who are unable or unwilling to use traditional loads.

It is worth noting that WBV requires much less time for training than in the case of conventional exercise and also in this way it can positively affect the feasibility of the training plan by previously inactive patients.

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