More than 6 million Germans suffer from diabetes. The number of unreported cases is unknown and the number in new diagnoses, also in children, reaches new records every year. A fifth of all health expenditure is due to the mostly avoidable disease. Newest research now clearly proves that more everyday movement is decisive for a successful therapy and prevention of diabetes. A Hamburg specialist physician goes literally new ways together with the Bavarian company Walkolution and introduces the worlds first walking consultation in his practice.
Movement for therapeutic success
In Hauke Groth’s consulting room, chairs are the second choice. The
specialist consistently implements what diabetes research has always been
shown. “Patients come to my practice for advice and see a role model in their doctor, of course. “explains Groth. “Here we want to lead by example and
show how easy it is to get movement in everyday life, for example in the
office. “
Working while walking — nothing new from an evolutionary point of view
It is not only his patients who go on a silent tour on the motorless treadmill during the medical consultation. The physician also writes his doctor’s letters while walking. “Going is the the most natural form of locomotion that has secured our existence for millions of years. I was thrilled when I found out about the system. Computer work or telephone calls can easily be done while walking and concentration also benefits. ”
Movement regulates blood sugar
Sitting reduces calorie consumption and the activity of lipoprotein lipase (LPL), an enzyme of fat metabolism, dramatically. Both lead through interaction with the insulin secretion to an often permanently elevated glucose level in the blood. With the most serious consequences:
40% of diabetics suffer from chronic kidney disease over time and lose
statistically 10–20 years of life expectancy.
In addition, the risk for heart attack and stroke and other serious complications gets heavily increased. What many don’t know: Not only overweight people are affected. People with a high proportion of so-called visceral fat, the invisible fat around the organs, often gets into a metabolic vicious circle at the end of which insulin resistance and diabetes develop.
Clinical studies show advantages for patients
In a large randomised clinical trial (RCT)1 conducted by the Universities of Ulm and the Southeast University in China Structured Walking Programs Diabetes Type II could help patients to regulate blood sugar much better without medication. In addition it lead to improvements in the BMI, blood pressure and also the level of fats in the blood. Another randomized clinical
Study of Umeå University in Sweden is currently investigating the influence of
88 overweight volunteers with otherwise sedentary office work at walking workstations, with promising interim results regarding metabolic and cardiovascular risk factors.
Walkolution develops working environments for the office of the future
“Offices must be adapted to allow our need for movement. This
is the cornerstone for the preservation of our health and a prerequisite for high intellectual performance ” says Walkolution co-founder and managing director Dr. Eric Söhngen. He’s himself as a medical specialist and, in addition to patient care, has also worked as a researcher and as an Book author dedicated to the health effects of physical inactivity.