Posted at 10 a.m., Wednesday, August 8, 2001

Walking, dropping weight reduces diabetes risk

Advertiser staff and news services

At least 10 million Americans at high risk of getting diabetes could cut that risk in half simply by walking 30 minutes a day and dropping a little weight, a major new study concludes.

Taking a daily pill called metformin also cut the risk of developing diabetes by almost a third — not nearly as effective as a modest diet and exercise, but far better than no treatment. It's the first time a medication for diabetes has proven protective.

So concludes the largest study ever on ways to prevent the most common form of diabetes, called Type 2 or adult-onset diabetes. The findings were so dramatic, the government announced today it was ending the clinical trial a year early.

The John A. Burns School of Medicine at the University of Hawai'i and the Queen's Medical Center were among 28 medical centers nationwide that took part in the Diabetes Prevention Program study.

Doctors have long advised losing weight and being active to fend off Type 2 diabetes. But they didn't have proof of how much was needed to make a difference. The deadly disease is growing at epidemic proportions as Americans get steadily fatter and more sedentary.

The new findings show people don't need to run marathons or try starvation diets. Indeed, the study participants lost just 15 pounts on average.

According to Dr. Richard Arakaki of the John A. Burns School of Medicine, 74 volunteers from Hawai'i participated in the study.

"We're clearly at high risk," he said. "Our rates of diabetes are much higher in Hawai'i than the national average." Arakaki estimated that 90,000 to 100,000 people in the state have the disease, with many more not yet diagnosed.

Diabetes is a leading cause of blindness, kidney failure, limb amputations and heart disease, and kills 180,000 Americans each year.

In Type 2 diabetes, the body gradually loses its ability to use insulin properly. It is most common after age 40, and the risk increases with age, although overweight children are getting the disease in greater numbers. Also at high risk are blacks, Hispanics and American Indians; the overweight; people whose relatives have diabetes; and women who had gestational diabetes during pregnancy.

The NIH study enrolled 3,234 Americans who were at very high risk of getting diabetes soon. Almost half the study participants were minorities.

Some were advised to do moderate exercise for 150 minutes a week and to lose 5 to 7 percent of their body weight. Others took metformin, a common Type 2 diabetes treatment. The rest were given dummy pills.

After three years, the group using diet and exercise had cut their risk of getting diabetes by a staggering 58 percent, across all races and ethnicities. The oldest people — those over age 60 — cut their risk the most, by 71 percent.

The Associated Press and Advertiser staff writer Katherine Nichols contributed to this report.