Physical exercise is beneficial for prevent and fight type 2 diabetes. But sex differences have been reported in aerobic capacity (the ability of muscles to work with oxygen), muscle mass, muscle fiber type composition, and physical performance.
Researchers wanted to get to the bottom of it. And indeed, while the muscles of women and men initially differ in the management of the energy source – glucose or fatty acids – on the other hand, regular physical activity quickly triggers similar beneficial metabolic changes in the muscles of both sexes. This new research will be presented at the congress of the European Association for the Study of Diabetes (EASD, Madrid, September 9-13).
Glucose or lipids? It depends on gender, at least at first
The study’s first author, Dr Simon Dreher, from the Institute for Diabetes and Metabolic Diseases Research (Tübingen, Germany), said: ” Exercise preserves insulin sensitivity in healthy individuals and restores it in those with prediabetes or diabetes. However, there are sex differences in skeletal muscle glucose and lipid utilization. ». The researchers then analyzed molecular differences in muscle biopsies from participants with an average age of 30, who were overweight or obese, and did not do any regular physical activity. They then performed one hour of moderate to intense endurance exercise, 3 times a week for 8 weeks.
Initially, ” Male muscles therefore have a higher capacity to use glucose during exercise, while women use fatty acids moreexplains Dr. Dreher. “But nothing is decided because after eight weeks of training, the differences between the skeletal muscles of women and men have diminished. : levels of proteins involved in converting food into energy increased in both sexes.
« Although the initial response of skeletal muscles to exercise differs between women and men, concludes the head of the study, Professor Cora Weigert, repeated exercise appears to cancel out these differences and trigger beneficial metabolic changes in both sexes. »
