Exercise can be nearly as effective as taking medicine in controlling blood sugar in people with diabetes, new research suggests.

Diabetics who exercise can trim waist size and body fat, and lower blood glucose, even if they don't see cardiovascular benefits, say researchers at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center cardiologists.

The UT study, published in the journal Diabetes Care, found that waist circumference, percentage of body fat, and hemoglobin A1c levels (a test of long-term blood sugar), all improved in diabetics who exercised compared to those who did not.

What’s more, the type of exercise didn’t seem to matter. The benefits were seen in people who engaged in aerobics, resistance training, or a combination of both.

'What we observed is that exercise improves diabetes control regardless of improvement in exercise capacity,' said Jarett Berry, M.D., an associate professor of internal medicine and clinical sciences at UT Southwestern.

The findings suggest that exercise-training programs be recommended for people with Type 2 diabetes.

The study was funded, in part, by the National Institutes of Health.