Effects of Changes in Body Fat Mass as a Result of Regular Exercise on Hemoglobin A1c in Patients With Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus: A Meta-Analysis

An increase in visceral fat is associated with an increase in insulin resistance, so reducing body fat mass through exercise may help alleviate type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). The current meta-analysis evaluated the effect of changes in body fat via an intervention of regular exercise on hemoglobin A1c (HbA 1c ) in patients with T2DM. The inclusion criteria were randomized controlled trials involving adults with T2DM, intervention involving exercise alone, an overall duration of intervention ≥12 weeks, and reporting HbA 1c and body fat mass. The mean differences (MDs) were defined as the MD between the exercise group and the control group, and the MDs in HbA 1c (in percentage) and body fat mass (in kilograms) were calculated. All MDs in HbA 1c were pooled as overall effects. A meta-regression analysis was performed to evaluate the relationship between the MD in the body fat mass (in kilograms) and the MD in HbA 1c . Twenty studies (1,134 subjects) were analyzed. The pooled MD in HbA 1c (in percentage) decreased significantly (−0.4; 95% confidence interval [−0.5, −0.3]) but contained significant heterogeneity ( Q = 52.7, p < .01; I 2 = 41.6%). A meta-regression analysis showed that a decrease in the MD in body fat mass was significantly associated with a decrease in the MD in HbA 1c ( R 2 = 80.0%) and heterogeneity decreased ( Q = 27.3, p = .61; I 2 = 11.9%), and a reduction in body fat mass of 1 kg was estimated to decrease the HbA 1c (%) by approximately 0.2. The current study suggested that a decrease in HbA 1c due to regular exercise depends on a reduction in body fat mass in patients with T2DM.