Heart disease, nerve damage and kidney failure are long-term effects of Type 2 diabetes, which occurs when the body no longer can make enough, or doesn’t respond to insulin — the body’s blood-sugar-regulating hormone. Research presented at the American Diabetes Association’s annual meeting suggests those complications associated with Type 2 diabetes can be minimized simply by exercising, which, in turn, regulates blood sugar by sensitizing muscle and liver cells to insulin. Based upon 14, eight-week studies, researchers followed 528 adults who either participated in regular exercise or who did not exercise at all. Results were positive for all those who exercised, regardless whether the regimen was aerobic in nature or resistance-training based.