Weight training found to lessen type 2 diabetes risk in men [news]

Physicians should encourage male patients to add moderate weight lifting to their fitness regimens to help prevent the development of type 2 diabetes, says the author of a recent Harvard School of Public Health study. Men who do weight training for 30 minutes, five days a week, might be able to reduce their risk of developing the chronic disease by up to 34%, said the study, published online Aug. 6 in Archives of Internal Medicine. But even modest lifting, such as 20 minutes, two or three times a week, can decrease a man’s diabetes risk. The greatest reduction occurred in those who combined lifting with aerobic exercise, a study says. Researchers are examining if the results apply to women.