A Systematic Review of Physical Activity and Exercise on Physiological and Biochemical Outcomes in Children and Adolescents With Type 1 Diabetes

Purpose In this systematic review we aimed to evaluate the effects of physical activity (PA) and exercise on biochemical and physiological outcomes in children and adolescents with type 1 diabetes (T1D). Design The review was conducted and reported following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines. Methods The search of literature was performed using PubMed, the Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature (CINAHL), Embase, the Cochrane Library, Scopus, Medline, PsycINFO, the Nursing Reference Center, and Google Scholar. The search was limited to include peer-reviewed articles published in English from May 2012 to May 2018 and included adolescents <19 years of age with T1D. Twenty-seven studies met the inclusion criteria: 8 interventional and 19 observational studies. Findings Both observational and interventional studies showed considerable agreement that supervised regular moderate to vigorous physical activity (MVPA) is more effective on adiposity and cardiorespiratory fitness than habitual PA. Further, it was reported that PA of different intensities improves insulin sensitivity and decreases daily insulin dosage. Results of glycemic control were equivocal. Although observational studies reported improvement in glycemic control with PA of different intensities, most of the experimental studies revealed no significant associations. A consistent agreement among the studies revealed a considerable benefit of regular habitual PA of light to moderate intensity on blood glucose regulation and lipid profile. Conclusions The reviewed studies showed that regular MVPA was associated with several health benefits in adolescents with T1D; however, additional studies are needed to fully understand the effect of PA on health outcomes. Clinical Relevance Regular MVPA (at least 4 hr per week) with good glycemic control is a promising option for adolescents with T1D when risk management of hypoglycemia is appropriately taken.