Exercise can help repair blood vessels

Q: Why does my doctor say that exercise will help me avoid diabetes-related heart disease? I thought it just came along with Type 2 diabetes, and there was nothing I could do about it.

Richard F., Santa Fe,

New Mexico

A: It’s true that heart disease is the No. 1 complication of diabetes. Excess blood glucose causes bodywide inf lammation and damages the circulatory system. That puts you at an increased risk for stroke, heart attack, peripheral artery disease, dementia, aging skin, a lousy sex life and more. Elevated glucose levels also damage the nerves in your heart muscle, making heart failure an increased risk. But you can do a lot to ease or prevent the damage. Exercise, along with smart nutrition (plant-based diet and no red or processed meats, added sugars or highly processed foods), is very effective in reducing not only your risk for heart disease but many other complications.

A new study in the journal of the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology reveals that one moderately intense 45-minute exercise session encourages the growth of new, healthy endothelial cells lining the outer wall of blood vessels.

That, in turn, allows growth of new healthy blood vessels. These are needed because diabetes not only damages blood vessels, it inhibits the growth of new ones.

How does exercise do that? The simple contraction of muscles from walking or running is enough to send submicroscopic packages of beneficial chemicals and chemical messengers into your bloodstream that are needed by damaged cells in the lining of your blood vessels.

Those goodies find the needy spots and take up residence, like in-home building contractors, so your body can repair the damage that would otherwise lead to cardiac problems.

So, what constitutes moderate-intensity exercise? It happens when you raise your heart rate and break a sweat.

Walking fast (15-minute mile), water aerobics, biking on mostly flat ground (10-12 mph) or doubles tennis all qualify. Enjoy!