Skip to main content

Smartwatches Can Help People Control Diabetes Through Exercise

Medically reviewed by Carmen Pope, BPharm. Last updated on March 31, 2025.

By Dennis Thompson HealthDay Reporter

MONDAY, March 31, 2025 -- Wearing a smartwatch might do more than track steps (or your texts) -- it could be a powerful tool for helping people with type 2 diabetes stay active, a new study says.

Participants were more likely to start and maintain an exercise regimen if they had a smartwatch providing them feedback and encouragement, researchers reported March 27 in the journal BMJ Open.

Early results also indicate that they were achieving better control over their blood sugar levels and blood pressure, researchers report.

“The results of this study can contribute to change the lives of many people around the world,” said researcher Ceu Mateus, a professor of health economics at Lancaster University in the U.K.

“There are millions of people suffering from diabetes type 2 without access to non-pharmacological interventions with sustained results in the long term,” she added in a news release. “Our study shows that independently of the place where you live, your age, your ethnicity, your gender, or your income, there is an exercise program that suits you.”

For the study, researchers recruited 135 people newly diagnosed with type 2 diabetes, and assigned half to wear a smartwatch paired with a health app on their smartphone.

The app guided participants through a home-based physical activity program, using the watch to track their metrics.

The program gradually increased their exercise to a target of 150 minutes per week of moderate- to vigorous-intensity physical activity. Participants also were supported by an online coaching service led by exercise specialists.

“The program offered a variety of workouts, including cardio and strength training, that could be done without the need for a gym,” lead researcher Katie Hesketh, an assistant professor in exercise prescription at the University of Birmingham, said in a news release. “Its goal is to make exercise a sustainable part of daily life for people with type 2 diabetes, ultimately improving their physical and mental health.”

Those who were given a smartwatch were 10 times more likely to start an exercise program than those who weren’t, results show, and three times more likely to still participate in that program a year later.

“We found that using biometrics from wearable technologies offered great promise for encouraging people with newly diagnosed type 2 diabetes to maintain a home-delivered, personalized exercise program with all the associated health benefits,” Hesketh concluded.

Based on these results, researchers plan to seek funding for a larger clinical trial that could see whether the smartwatch-based fitness program can actually help people with type 2 diabetes achieve control over their condition.

Sources

  • Lancaster University, news release, March 27, 2025

Disclaimer: Statistical data in medical articles provide general trends and do not pertain to individuals. Individual factors can vary greatly. Always seek personalized medical advice for individual healthcare decisions.

© 2025 HealthDay. All rights reserved.

Read this next

Umbilical Cord Could Contain Clues For Child's Future Health

FRIDAY, April 25, 2025 -- Doctors might be able to predict a newborn's long-term health outlook, by analyzing their umbilical cord blood, a new study says. Genetic clues found in...

FDA and Novo Nordisk Alert Consumers to Counterfeit Ozempic

MONDAY, April 21, 2025 -- The U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the pharmaceutical company Novo Nordisk are urging consumers to be on the lookout for counterfeit Ozempic...

First Weight-Loss Pill From Lilly, Orforglipron, Shows Promising Results

FRIDAY, April 18, 2025 — A new pill designed to help with weight loss and blood sugar control is showing promise in early studies. Eli Lilly said its experimental drug...

More news resources

Subscribe to our newsletter

Whatever your topic of interest, subscribe to our newsletters to get the best of Drugs.com in your inbox.