Introduction: Health-Related Quality of Life (HRQOL) is a key indicator of how chronic conditions such as type 2 diabetes (T2D) affect an individual’s overall well-being. This study explored the relationship between HRQOL and health-related data in older T2D participants. Methods: This retrospective study analyzed data from 987 participants with T2D who underwent checkups at the IRCCS INRCA Hospital, Ancona, Italy. Participants with an EQ-5D-3L index score of 1 were classified as having “no problems” in any dimension, and those with a value less than 1 were categorized as having “any problems”. Results: The mean age was 76.5 years (SD ± 4.5), and 46.5% were male. The “any problems” group (n = 795) was older and had longer diabetes duration, lower educational attainment, higher total cholesterol, higher triglycerides, and a higher Body Mass Index (BMI) with respect to the “no problems” group (n = 195). Multivariate logistic regression identified female sex (OR 2.14, 95% CI: 1.24–3.70), higher BMI (OR 1.07, 95% CI: 1.01–1.14), and depressive symptoms by the 5-item mini-Geriatric Depression Scale (mini GDS 5) (OR 2.43, 95% CI: 1.84–3.21) as significantly associated with lower HRQOL. Conversely, higher scores of the Instrumental Activities of Daily Living (IADL) (OR 0.77, 95% CI: 0.65–0.91) were related to better HRQOL. Conclusions: Female sex, overweight status, depressive symptoms, and lower physical performance are associated with impaired HRQOL in older Italian T2D outpatients. In particular, the EQ-5D-3L index provides a comprehensive index associated with depressive symptoms and low mobility.

Background: Physical activity is an important predictor of quality of life in older adults with type 2 diabetes (T2D). Unfortunately, most T2D adults adopt a sedentary lifestyle. The randomized, controlled TRIPL-A trial aims to verify the effect of a personalized, discontinuous exercise program on a sedentary lifestyle of T2D older adults. Methods: A total of 305 T2D patients (mean age ± SD: 68.8 ± 3.3 years) were divided into a control arm receiving only behavioral counseling and an intervention arm of an 18-month supervised discontinuous exercise program (ERS). The primary outcomes were the changes in sitting time (ST) and metabolic equivalent (MET) values, both evaluated by the International Physical Activity Questionnaire short form. A repeated measures ANOVA with Bonferroni correction for multiple comparisons was used to compare study outcomes. Results: The ST and MET differed significantly during the study compared to the control group (p = 0.028 and p = 0.004, respectively). In the intervention group, a decrease from baseline in ST at 6 months (p = 0.01) and an increase in MET values at 6 months (p = 0.01) up to 12 months (p < 0.01) were found. No significant differences were found for the other variables. Conclusions: Beneficial lifestyle changes were found within the first year of intervention. These results align with the theory of change.