Sex Differences in the Glycemic Response to Structured Exercise Interventions in Type II Diabetes Mellitus Adults: A Systematic Review

International Journal of Exercise Science 15(3): 948-961, 2022. Despite physiological sex differences in the prevalence, pathogenesis, and responses to pharmacologic therapies of glucose metabolism in type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and the current evidence regarding the benefits of physical activity in people with T2DM, there is still a lack of information about the response to physical activity in T2DM depending on the sex. Thus, the aim of the present systematic review was to analyze the physiological sex differences response to physical activity programs in adults with T2DM. A systematic review following PRISMA guidelines was performed up to 4th January 2022 in PubMed, SportDiscus and Web of Science databases. The research protocol of this systematic review was registered in PROSPERO (CRD42020189020). The PEDro scale and Cochrane risk of bias tools were used to analyze the quality and risk of bias of the studies included. Glycaemic (blood glucose, HbA1c, AUC glycemia, metabolic clearance rate, QUICKI) insulin (HOMA-IR, insulin levels, C-peptide) and cardiovascular parameters (VO2max, body fat mass, waist circumference, cardiovascular index) were registered. 6 studies met the inclusion criteria. Physical activity showed improvements in the glycaemic and insulin profiles and cardiovascular risk parameters for both men and women, but no relevant and significant differences between sex were found. No significant differences between males and females with regard to the effects elicited by physical activity on glycaemic biomarkers and cardiorespiratory fitness in individuals with T2DM were found. These results seem to lead towards the same physical activity prescription in men and women