Why the study?
Growing evidence has focused on the temporality of dietary intake and exercise, prompting a need to summarize how the timing of exercise relative to eating affects postprandial response in adults.
Does exercise performed post-meal improve postprandial glycemic response in healthy adults and those with type 2 diabetes?
Does exercise performed post-meal improve postprandial glycemic response in healthy adults and those with type 2 diabetes?
Post-meal exercise improves postprandial glycemia in adults, though the optimal timing relative to meals requires further standardized investigation.
Post-meal exercise improves postprandial glycemia; reinforces timing of activity as a practical adjunct in T2D management.
Type 2 diabetes is a major public health concern. Management of this condition has focused on behavior modification through diet and exercise interventions. A growing body of evidence has focused on temporality of dietary intake and exercise and potential effects on health. This review summarizes current literature that investigates the question "how does the timing of exercise relative to eating throughout the day effect postprandial response in adults?" Databases PubMed, Scopus, Cochrane Library, CINAHL, and SPORTDiscus were searched between March-May 2019. Experimental studies conducted in healthy adults (≥18 y) and those with type 2 diabetes were included. Full texts were examined by at least two independent reviewers. Twenty studies with a total of 352 participants met the inclusion criteria. The primary finding supports that exercise performed post-meal regardless of time of day had a beneficial impact on postprandial glycemia. There was insufficient evidence regarding whether timing of exercise performed pre- vs. post-meal or vice versa in a day is related to improved postprandial glycemic response due to inherent differences between studies. Future studies focusing on the investigation of timing and occurrence of meal intake and exercise throughout the day are needed to inform whether there is, and what is, an optimal time for these behaviors regarding long-term health outcomes.
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Aqeel et al. (2020) studied this question.
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