The short walk after dinner that your blood sugar will thank you for
Even a few minutes of easy walking after a meal softens the sugar spike. The elders who insisted on it had it right.
Most families have an elder who insists on a slow walk after dinner, round the colony or up and down the corridor. It turns out they were onto something.
After a meal, especially one heavy on rice, roti or sweets, blood sugar climbs over the next hour. Working muscles pull sugar out of the blood and need less insulin to do it. A 2022 review in the journal Sports Medicine pooled several studies and found that even two to five minutes of light walking after eating lowered the rise in blood sugar compared with sitting. Standing helped a little. Walking helped more.
This matters in a country where, according to the ICMR-INDIAB study, more than 10 crore people have diabetes and another 13 crore have prediabetes. Sharp spikes after meals, repeated for years, strain the body even in people whose fasting sugar still looks normal.
Making it a habit - Start within about half an hour of finishing your meal. Ten to fifteen minutes is plenty. - It doesn't need to be brisk. An easy stroll does the job. - No space outside? Walk around the house, take the stairs a couple of times, or clear the kitchen standing up. - Make it a family routine. It is the easiest time of the day to catch up with each other. - If you take insulin or tablets for diabetes, talk to your doctor before a big change in activity, as your dose may need adjusting.
Where this comes from - Buffey AJ et al. The Acute Effects of Interrupting Prolonged Sitting Time in Adults with Standing and Light-Intensity Walking on Biomarkers of Cardiometabolic Health in Adults: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis. Sports Medicine, 2022. - Anjana RM et al. Metabolic non-communicable disease health report of India: the ICMR-INDIAB national cross-sectional study. Lancet Diabetes & Endocrinology, 2023.
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