The Health Professional's Guide to Diabetes and Exercise

The Health Professional's Guide to Diabetes and Exercise Neil Ruderman and John T. Devlin (Eds.) The product of a collaborative effort between the American Diabetes Association (ADA) and the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM),The Health Professional's Guide to Diabetes and Exercise is an exceptional resource for clinicians who work with patients diagnosed with diabetes. The guidelines presented in the book represent the consensus opinion of the ADA Council on Exercise and the ACSM and were developed over the course of several years by experts from both organizations. The book is especially notable for its coverage of topics related to exercise in the management of diabetes. Topics of interest are divided into six general sections: Basic Considerations; The Treatment Plan; Exercise in Patients with Diabetic Complications; Exercise in Special Patient Groups; Sports: Practical Advice and Experience; and Resources and Reimbursement. The chapters within each section are succinct and concise, generally containing approximately 8-10 pages. Basic tables, charts, and diagrams serve to highlight the main points of each chapter, allowing the reader to quickly interpret the information presented. In addition, each chapter is followed by a listing of references. The strength of this book lies not only in its discussion of basic topics such as exercise physiology, the benefits of exercise, principles of exercise, adjustment of insulin dosage, and nutrition and exercise, but also in its presentation of subject matter regarding specific patient subgroups. I found the chapters on exercise in patients with diabetes-related complications to be especially informative. Specifically, the chapters on diabetic retinopathy and neuropathy were well-presented. In addition, readers will find the chapters on exercise as they relate to women and to aging to be particularly relevant. To round things out, the book addresses several topics related to exercise epidemiology (e.g., Prediabetes and the Insulin Resistance Syndrome) and exercise from a public health perspective (e.g., Exercise Programs in Minority Populations, Community-Based Exercise Programs). The authors of The Health Professional's Guide to Diabetes and Exercise are to be commended for their efforts in developing a consensus opinion on the efficacy of exercise in the management of diabetes and presenting these exercise guidelines in a text which is easily interpreted and understood. Any individual who is part of a diabetes management team or patient education program or who works with diabetic patients in exercise settings should consider this book an essential resource. The Health Professional's Guide to Diabetes and Exercise is concise, informative, well-written, and presented by experts from two of the most well-recognized and highly regarded organizations in the world: the ADA and ACSM. Without doubt, this book is good stuff.