Investigating lipid profile changes following combined exercises (resistance-aerobic) with ginger and cinnamon supplements in obese postmenopausal women with type 2 diabetes

Diabetes is the most common disease caused by metabolic disorders and one of the most important public health problems. Along with medical and nutritional treatments, exercise is one of the treatment methods for type 2 diabetes. Along with medical and nutritional treatments, exercise is one of the type 2 treatment methods. The aim of the current research was to investigate the changes of lipid profiles following combined exercises (resistance-aerobic) with ginger and cinnamon supplements in obese postmenopausal women with type 2 diabetes.

23 obese diabetic women were selected purposefully and were randomly divided into two groups, combined exercise and ginger consumption (n=11) and combined exercise and cinnamon consumption (n=12). In two groups, they received 1500 mg of ginger and 1500 mg of cinnamon in capsule form daily for eight weeks. Both groups performed resistance training and aerobic interval training (running) with an intensity of 75-85% of maximum heart rate for eight weeks, three sessions per a week. Analysis of variance with repeated measurements was used to check the mean difference of the variables. The significance level was considered as α ≤ 0.05.

Eight weeks of combined exercises led to a significant decrease in cholesterol, triglycerides and LDL/HDL ratio (P<0.05). However, there was no difference in the mentioned indicators between the two training groups with the consumption of ginger and cinnamon (P>0.05).

Both types of combined exercise and cinnamon consumption and combined exercise and ginger consumption improve the lipid profile in obese postmenopausal women with type 2 diabetes, which is a favorable event considering its initial increase in these patients.