Moderate-to-vigorous physical activity changes in a diabetes prevention intervention randomized trial among South Asians with prediabetes – The D-CLIP trial

Aims The Diabetes Community Lifestyle Improvement Program (D-CLIP) was a lifestyle education program to prevent diabetes in South Asians with prediabetes. This paper examines the impact of the D-CLIP intervention on moderate-to-vigorous intensity physical activity (MVPA). Methods This randomized controlled trial to prevent diabetes included 573 individuals with prediabetes from Chennai, India. The intervention was designed to increase MVPA to ≥150 minutes per week. MVPA was measured by questionnaire at baseline, six, 12, 18, 24, 30 and 36 months of follow-up. Random effects models were used to examine the relationship between treatment group and odds of reporting ≥150 weekly minutes of MVPA and to examine the impact of the intervention on weekly MVPA. Results With the exception of the proportion of respondents at baseline with a high waist circumference, selected sample characteristics did not differ at baseline between the intervention and control groups. The intervention significantly (p < 0.05) increased the proportion of respondents who reported ≥150 weekly minutes of MVPA by 28.5%, 13.6% and 14.0% at six, 12 and 18 months respectively. Mean minutes of weekly MVPA significantly (p < 0.05) increased by an additional 56.7, 34.3, 23.6 and 24.3 minutes/week at six, 12, 18, and 24 months, respectively. Conclusion The D-CLIP intervention significantly increased MVPA at six, 12 and 18 months of follow-up. Interventions to prevent diabetes in South Asians with prediabetes can significantly increase MVPA in this population.