Can Walking Around Toronto Help Prevent Diabetes?

There is a particular kind of movement that barely registers as exercise in Toronto. You walk to the streetcar, take the stairs because the elevator is slow, cross Bay in a hurry, carry groceries home, and do it again the next day. None of it looks like a workout. Most of us do not put it in a calendar or give ourselves credit for it.

New research suggests we probably should.

A 2026 study followed 22,706 adults who did not do formal leisure-time exercise. Using wearable activity data, the researchers looked at brief bursts of moderate-to-vigorous activity embedded in ordinary life rather than gym sessions. Over an average 7.9 years of follow-up, people who accumulated more of those bursts had a lower rate of new type 2 diabetes.

That is a hopeful finding for a city where a lot of movement happens in pieces. It is also worth reading carefully, because “a few minutes of stairs prevents diabetes” is not what the study proved.

What the researchers actually found

The study separated two kinds of incidental activity:

• Vigorous intermittent lifestyle physical activity: very short, hard bursts—think climbing stairs quickly or hurrying uphill.
• Moderate-to-vigorous intermittent lifestyle physical activity: a broader category that includes brisk movement built into errands, commuting, and daily routines.

Among participants who did not report leisure-time exercise, the median 3.9 minutes a day of the vigorous form was associated with a 36% lower rate of incident type 2 diabetes compared with none. The median 25.3 minutes a day of the broader moderate-to-vigorous form was associated with a 46% lower rate.

Those are associations, not guarantees. The participants’ average age was 62, and observational research cannot prove that the activity itself caused the lower risk. People who move more in daily life may differ in other important ways. But the finding is consistent with a useful idea: health-promoting activity does not have to arrive in a matching outfit or a 45-minute block.

Why this is useful in a city like Toronto

The advice to “exercise more” is usually too vague to survive a real week. It assumes you have spare time, a predictable schedule, disposable income, and the energy to start again at 7 p.m. after work, school, caregiving, or a long commute.

That does not mean a gym or a planned walk is unhelpful. It means they are not the only form of movement that counts. A person who chooses the stairs, walks an extra block, carries their groceries, or makes a brisk trip part of their normal routine is doing something real for their health—even if they never become the person who loves the gym.

The important word is brisk. A stroll is still good for mood, connection, and getting outside, but this study looked at movement intense enough to raise the effort level for a short time. The point is not to turn every walk to the streetcar into a test. It is to notice that everyday life already offers more opportunities than an all-or-nothing view of exercise suggests.

What this does not change

Short bursts of movement are not a substitute for a fuller prevention plan when someone is at elevated risk of diabetes. They do not cancel out smoking, untreated high blood pressure, poor sleep, a strong family history, or an A1C that is already in the prediabetes range. And no one should start vigorous activity without medical advice if they have symptoms or a condition that makes it unsafe.

The established recommendations remain more substantial. For people with prediabetes, Diabetes Canada recommends a structured healthy-behaviour program that includes regular physical activity and, where appropriate, moderate weight loss. The new study adds a more encouraging entry point: the small pieces of movement you can repeat may be worth protecting too.

What a family doctor adds

Prevention works best when it is not generic. The same daily routine means something different for a person with a strong family history of diabetes, a previous pregnancy affected by gestational diabetes, elevated blood pressure, disrupted sleep, or normal bloodwork.

A family doctor can put the pieces together: check whether diabetes screening is due, interpret an A1C in context, watch blood pressure and cholesterol over time, and help make a plan that fits a real life. The useful question is not “am I doing enough?” It is “what matters most for my risk, and what is realistic for me to keep doing?”

Start smaller than your ambition

If the all-or-nothing version of exercise has kept you stuck, try an experiment for a week: choose one ordinary trip each day and make a small part of it brisker. Take the stairs for one floor. Get off transit one stop early if the route and weather make that sensible. Walk around the block after lunch. The goal is not a perfect number. It is a routine you can still recognize as yours next month.

For a more complete look at the tests that can support prevention, see The Bloodwork You’ve Been Meaning to Get.

Button Health is a new OHIP family practice opening in downtown Toronto in late summer 2026. If you want a family doctor who can help you turn prevention into an ongoing conversation, join the priority list for first access when we open.

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References

1. Dose–Response Associations of Intermittent Lifestyle Physical Activity Micropatterns and Incident Type 2 Diabetes. Diabetes Care, 2026. DOI: 10.2337/dc25-3018.

2. Reducing the Risk of Developing Diabetes. Diabetes Canada Clinical Practice Guidelines.