Irregular Sleep may lead to Type 2 Diabetes

Are you a middle aged or older adult with an irregular sleep pattern? A recent study has shown that you may be at increased risk of developing type 2 Diabetes.

Type 2 Diabetes is a metabolic disease caused by relative insensitivity to insulin, an hormone responsible for the regulation of blood sugar in the body. Type 2 diabetes is associated with lifestyle of an individual. People who are less active physically are more prone to it.

The study was done by researchers from Bringham and Women’s Hospital in the USA. It monitored the sleep patterns of volunteers over 7 nights and followed them over 7 years. Results showed that those with the most irregular sleep patterns showed a 34% higher risk for diabetes than others. Participants in this study were an average age of 62 years and initially not diabetic.

It is recommended that adults sleep between 7 and 9 hours at night to reduce their overall risks of illnesses especially diseases that modifiable lifestyle factors play a role.

Irregular sleep is a situation where day to day sleep duration varies by more than an hour. The study considered other possible factors like illnesses and family history before coming to this conclusion

Limitation. It is hoped that future studies will assess more than a 7day sleep duration and use younger participants.