Lack Of Sleep Linked To Diabetes

A lack of sleep during the work week has been linked to diabetes, the American Heart Association found.

People who get less than six hours of rest for five consecutive nights can develop a blood sugar abnormality that may lead to type 2 diabetes.

“The theory is that losing sleep interferes with the hormonal regulation of blood sugar,” explains CityNews Medical Specialist Dr Karl Kabasele.

In fact, “short” sleepers were nearly five times more likely to develop the illness than those who slept for eight hours.

“This study supports growing evidence of the association of inadequate sleep with adverse health issues. Sleep should be assessed in the clinical setting as part of well-care visits throughout the life cycle,” Lisa Rafalson, Ph.D., lead author of the study announced in a press release.

Abnormal fasting blood sugar levels were tracked over a six-year period

At this point, researchers do not believe there is a genetic link for their findings.

“While previous studies have suggested that there may be many genes that each have a very small effect on the risk of diabetes, there is no known genetic predisposition to sleep disturbances that could explain our study’s results, especially in this limited sample size,” added Rafalson, a National Research Service Award fellow and research assistant professor at the University at Buffalo in New York.

Diabetes develops when the body makes relatively too much insulin and doesn’t efficiently use the insulin it makes (insulin resistance).

How To Reduce Your Risk

Type 1 diabetes can’t be prevented. However, the same healthy lifestyle choices help prevent and treat prediabetes, type 2 diabetes and gestational diabetes.

• Eat healthy foods. Choose foods low in fat and calories. Focus on fruits, vegetables and whole grains. Strive for variety to prevent boredom.
• Get more physical activity. Aim for 30 minutes of moderate physical activity a day. Take a brisk daily walk. Ride your bike. Swim laps. If you can’t fit in a long workout, break it up into smaller sessions spread throughout the day.
• Lose excess pounds. If you’re overweight, losing even 5 percent of your body weight – for example, 10 pounds (4.5 kilograms) if you weigh 200 pounds (90.7 kilograms) – can reduce the risk of diabetes. To keep your weight in a healthy range, focus on permanent changes to your eating and exercise habits. Motivate yourself by remembering the benefits of losing weight, such as a healthier heart, more energy and improved self-esteem.
• Sometimes medication is an option as well. Oral diabetes drugs such as metformin (Glucophage) and rosiglitazone (Avandia) may reduce the risk of type 2 diabetes – but healthy lifestyle choices remain essential.

Information credit: The Mayo Clinic