Breaking up Prolonged Sitting does not Alter Postprandial Glycemia in Young, Normal-Weight Men and Women

A randomized, controlled, cross-over study was used to investigate the effects of breaking up prolonged sitting with low intensity physical activity on postprandial blood glucose concentrations in healthy, young, normal-weight adults. 14 men ( n =6) and women ( n =8) were assigned to 2.5 h of prolonged sitting (CON) and 2.5 h of prolonged sitting with 2-min bouts of walking every 20 min (LIPA). After ingesting a standardized test drink, capillary blood was sampled every 10 min to establish a postprandial blood glucose profile. Based on individual glucose responses, peak blood glucose, time-to-peak glucose, and incremental area under the glucose curve (iAUC) were determined. Paired sample t-tests were used to detect differences between trials. Peak blood glucose (p = 0.55) and iAUC (CON: 25.2 mmol · L − 1 · 2.5 h − 1 [16.3–34.0]; LIPA: 21.4 mmol · L − 1 · 2.5 h − 1 [14.6– 28.2]; p = 0.45) were not different between trials. Also, time-to-peak glucose was not different between LIPA and CON ( p =0.37). Taking advantage of high temporal resolution blood glucose profiles, we showed that breaking up prolonged sitting with low-intensity physical activity does not alter the postprandial blood glucose response in young, healthy, normal-weight adults. Our results indicate that postprandial glycemic control is maintained during prolonged sitting in young, healthy adults.