Exercise is
good for you, we know this. It helps build muscle, burns fat and makes us all
happy, healthy people. But long before you start looking the way you want,
there are some subtle, rapid, molecular and immune changes that take place
within your cells. Changes that may be responsible for protecting us from heart
disease, high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes - and preventing aging and
cancer.
You might
think that “cellular” changes might not be so big. Surely fat loss and muscle
gain are the best results of exercise? Genetic mutations actually affect how
genes and proteins are regulated within the cells. Genetics can work more or
less, while proteins can be quickly metabolized to perform different functions
and perform functions such as transporting glucose to cells more efficiently,
or protecting cells from harmful toxins.
Type 2
diabetes causes all kinds of health problems, including heart disease, high
blood pressure, blindness, kidney failure and nerve damage, and it can lead to
amputation. The main reason is the development of a growing state of
inflammation in the tissues and cells of the body. This damages the cells and
can eventually lead to an increase in insulin and, ultimately, type 2 diabetes.
The main
risk factors for type 2 diabetes include obesity, poor diet and sedentary
lifestyle. However, we have found that even low-intensity exercise, such as
brisk walking, can increase the body's insulin sensitivity. This means that
people who are at risk of diabetes are at risk because they are able to digest
glucose effectively.
In our
study, we asked 20 sedentary people who are at risk of diabetes to walk fast 45
minutes, three times a week, for eight weeks. Although there was no change in
their weight, blood pressure or cholesterol level, on average each participant
lost an important six inches from his or her waist circumference. And, more
important, there was a reduction in their risk of diabetes.
Benefits of
the immune system
Interestingly,
there were also changes caused by exercise in participants' monocytes - an
important immune cell circulating in the blood. This has led to a decrease in
inflammation, which is one of the major risks of type 2 diabetes.
When our
bodies are attacked by foreign invaders like viruses, antibodies like monocytes
turn into microphages that “eat microbes”. Their main function is to fight
infections in our muscles and lungs. There are two main types of macrophages,
M1 and M2. M1 macrophages are associated with inflammatory responses and are
needed to fight disease aggressively. However, in obese people who do not
exercise, these cells begin to function even when there is no disease. This can
lead to an unwanted, growing inflammatory condition that can “trigger”
diabetes.
On the other
hand, M2 macrophages play a role in "quenching" inflammation and are
helpful in "reducing" the most aggressive M1. So a healthy balance of
M1 and M2 macrophages is important to maintain a proper immune response - and
can help prevent the growing inflammatory process caused by lack of exercise
and obesity.
Other
studies have also shown that exercise has a beneficial effect on the
functioning of the body's immune system and may reduce unwanted inflammation.
Exercise training in obese people has been found to reduce the level of tissue
inflammation mainly because there are small macrophage cells present in fatty
tissue.
In addition,
the researchers found an important link between exercise and the balance of M1
and M2 macrophages. It has been shown that strenuous exercise in obese mice led
to the transition from macrophages of M1 "aggressive" to M2
"defective" - and that this decrease in inflammation was associated
with improved insulin resistance.
Travel time
There is no
definitive answer to how much and how much exercise is needed to protect us
from sugar. Although some researchers have shown that while high exercise improves
overall body strength, there is little difference between high and low
intensity exercise in improving insulin sensitivity.
However, new
research has found that all forms of aerobic exercise - especially short-term
high-intensity training such as cycling and running - can effectively stop
aging at the cellular level. Exercise causes cells to make more protein
mitochondria that produce energy and ribosomes that make up protein. The
researchers also found that these “cellular” changes in genetic and protein
levels occur much faster after exercise and that the effects prevent damage to
essential proteins in the cells and improve insulin resistance.
While you
may not immediately notice the changes you are making, even a moderate exercise
program can make the difference in the body's immune system. This means that
exercise can have far-reaching health benefits for some inflammatory diseases
and may even protect us from aging and cancer.