Developing a simple tool to help people with type 1 diabetes exercise

Although regular exercise is important for us all, most people with type 1 diabetes (T1D) don’t exercise regularly. This is often because they are worried about their blood glucose going too low, and don’t have the right tools to help keep them under control. Dr Richard Pulsford from the University of Exeter is developing a simple tool that could help people with T1D exercise.

Why is exercise important if you have T1D?

Exercise is good for everyone, but it has even more benefits if you have T1D. It can help keep blood glucose levels more stable in the long term and increase how sensitive you are to insulin, meaning you might not need to take as much. Exercise can also help prevent long-term T1D complications, particularly heart disease, and improve mental health.

How does exercise affect blood glucose?

Exercise affects everyone with T1D differently, and different forms of exercise can affect blood glucose in different ways. Aerobic exercise like swimming, cycling or running usually causes them to drop. When Richard asked people with T1D why they don’t exercise regularly, the main reasons were that they are worried about their blood glucose going too low, called a ‘hypo’, and don’t have the tools to help keep them under control. Learn more about T1D and exercise.

A new tool to help people with T1D exercise

Richard is developing a visual tool called ‘GlucoseGo’ that predicts someone’s likelihood of having a hypo during exercise based on simple information (their blood glucose before they start exercise and how long they plan to exercise for). GlucoseGo is displayed as a simple traffic-light heatmap, which could support people with T1D to exercise and reduce hypos.

Richard said:

“Exercise is so important, but when we have asked people living with T1D about exercise they have told us that concerns about having a hypoglycaemic episode during exercise sometimes stop them from taking part, and that they don’t feel like there are tools to help. We have been developing simple tools to help people understand the likelihood of them having a hypoglycaemic episode based on simple information about them and the exercise they would like to do. In this project children with T1D will help us design what these tools should look like, where they should be available and how they should be used. We hope this will make them useful for as many people as possible”

What will Richard do in this project?

In this project, Richard will use information on exercise and blood glucose from children under 12 to test if GlucoseGo works in this age group. Richard will then improve the tool by asking adults and children with T1D to help design what it should look like and how it could be used. These people and their doctors will be asked to use GlucoseGo and provide further feedback. At the end of the project, Richard will have a version of GlucoseGo that can be tested in a real-world study to see how helpful it is.

How will this project benefit people with T1D?

This project will benefit people with T1D by directly addressing an important unmet need. The new tool Richard is developing could help reduce worry about exercise-related hypos, and the number of hypos experienced when exercising. This could encourage people with T1D to exercise more often, improving their general health and blood glucose control, and reducing the risk of long-term T1D complications.

Is there any other research like this taking place?

Last year, we conducted some market research that showed people with T1D are held back from exercise due to stigma and fear of hypos. The research highlighted the need for more support for people with T1D around exercise, which Richard’s project could help address.

The survey also highlighted the need for education for people running sport and exercise activities. We’re already working to improve knowledge and education around T1D and exercise through partnering with organisations to produce guidance for coaches, providing information and support online, running regular events on managing T1D and exercise, and working with partners in the healthcare profession, such as EXTOD.