Many studies have been conducted into the effects of insufficient sleep on health. Sleep apnea is one of the more common reasons for chronic sleep deprivation. A current study has linked lack of sleep with an increased risk of developing type-2 diabetes.
Researchers from Columbia University in New York studied the relationship between the amount of sleep and development of diabetes in nearly 9,000 patients. The subjects of the study participated in the Epidemiologic Follow-Up Studies of the first National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. This was a 10-year project between 1982 and 1992. The members of the study group ranged in age from 32 to 86.
The researchers found that not only were short sleep durations of 5 hours or less lead to a significant increase in the risk of diabetes, but sleeping more that 9 hours a night also resulted in a significant increase in the risk of developing diabetes. These risk levels were compared to subjects who reported getting 7 hours of sleep a night.
Other factors can increase the risk of diabetes, such as level of physical activity, alcohol consumption, ethnicity, age, obesity and depression. But even adjusting for these factors, less than 5 or more than 9 hours of sleep a night resulted in the higher risk.
The report, authored by Dr. James E. Gangwisch, surmised that the relationship between sleep and diabetes is due to the influence of short sleep duration on body weight and hypertension. Prior studies had shown that lack of sleep decreases glucose tolerance and impacts insulin sensitivity. The resulting insulin resistance increases the burden on the pancreas which can lead to type-2 diabetes.
According to Dr. Lawrence Epstein, medical director of Sleep Health Centers, and an instructor of medicine at the Harvard Medical School, “sleep disorders that disrupt sleep, such as obstructive sleep apnea, also increase the likelihood of developing diabetes. Treating the sleep disorders improves glucose metabolism and diabetes control. These studies underscore the fact that sleep is integral to good health.”
The results of the study were published in the December 1 issue of the journal Sleep.
No Comment Received
Leave A Reply