Effects of a home-based aerobic exercise programme in children with type 1 diabetes mellitus

Aims: To explore the effects of exercise programme on glycosylated haemoglobin and peak oxygen uptake in children and adolescents with type 1 diabetes mellitus. Background: Regular exercise has been shown to be effective in blood glucose control, which includes improving glucose tolerance and insulin sensitivity, decreasing glycosylated haemoglobin levels and improving cardiorespiratory fitness. Design: Quasi-experimental design with a twelve-week home-based aerobic exercise programme. Method: Twenty-eight participants completed the study: 12 in the home-based exercise group, 11 in the non-exercise control group and five in the self-directed exercise group. A mixed model was used to capture longitudinal change in glycosylated haemoglobin levels. Results: The home-based aerobic exercise group showed no significant effect on glycemic control and peak oxygen uptake in this study across assessment times. However, a group difference in glycosylated haemoglobin levels at the nine-month follow-up was significant (general linear model: F=4·06, p=0·03). A Bonferroni test indicated that glycosylated haemoglobin levels in the home-based exercise group were higher than in the self-directed exercise group (p<0·05) and higher in the control group than in the self-directed exercise group (p<0·05) at the nine-month follow-up. Home-based aerobic exercise showed no significant effect on peak oxygen uptake in this study. Conclusions: A three-month home-based aerobic exercise programme has no significant effect on glycosylated haemoglobin and peak oxygen uptake levels in children with type 1 diabetes mellitus. Relevance to clinical practice. Our exercise programme has designed that children can practice exercise at home and is a viable component of self-care intervention to improve patient's self-care skill and diabetes care control. However, how to encourage patients to adhere the exercise programme is a challenge for health care providers.