Can Poor Sleep Quality Increase Your Risk For Type 2 Diabetes? Know How Sleep And Diabetes Are Linked

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Those with type 2 diabetes are characterized by insulin resistance, which occurs when cells do not react normally to insulin. In an attempt to get your cells to respond, your pancreas makes more insulin. As your pancreas becomes incapable of keeping up, you develop prediabetes and type 2 diabetes. This is the most common form of diabetes [1].

Several factors contribute to type 2 diabetes, such as lifestyle factors and genes, such as obesity, overweight, inactivity, insulin resistance, genetics, enzymatic mutations, hormonal imbalances, etc.

And, according to a new study, sleep quality and people's perceptions of their sleep quality may increase the risk of developing type 2 diabetes [2].

Are Sleep And Diabetes Linked?

Here are the important points from the study:

Point 1: In this study, researchers examined how people's reports of trouble sleeping and objective sleep measures impacted specific to type 2 diabetes risk factors. Over 1,000 participants participated in the study [3].

Point 2: Several dimensions of sleep were tested in this study, including self-reported troubled sleep and actigraphy-derived sleep parameters, in relation to risk factors for type 2 diabetes (BMI, cholesterol, and inflammation).

Point 3: According to the research, both individual and statistical measures of sleep may influence cardiometabolic health and, as a result, potentially increase the risk of developing type 2 diabetes.

Point 4: This study has three clinical implications, including (1) sleep may be important for cardiometabolic health, (2) sleep is multidimensional, containing a variety of characteristics (duration, timing, quality, and variability) (3) Considering all aspects of sleep, including the perception of sleep experience, is important for health.

Point 5: Therefore, it is difficult to conclude that poor sleep quality alone contributes to the risk of developing type 2 diabetes, according to the researchers. However, the results indicate that both perceptions of sleep quality and objective measurements of sleep quality should be considered as components in future research [4][5].

On A Final Note...

Type 2 diabetes does not affect everyone, and doctors cannot always predict who will or will not develop the disease.

Researchers are still working to understand how risk factors interact to reduce the risk of diabetes and how individuals can control these risk factors. In order to better understand the different dimensions of sleep, particularly the individual's sleep experience, further research is needed.

Disclaimer: The information provided in this article is for general informational and educational purposes only and is not intended as a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician or a qualified healthcare provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition.