When people don't get enough sleep on a daily basis, this is associated with a significantly increased risk of developing diabetes. Even a healthy diet cannot protect against this increased risk.
A new study involving experts from Uppsala University in Sweden examined how diet and sleep duration are linked to the development of type 2 diabetes. The results can be read in the English-language journal “JAMA Network Open”.
Prevent diabetes by getting enough sleep?
Understanding how sleep duration and diet are related to the risk of developing diabetes is crucial for diabetes prevention and public health, the team explains.
The researchers therefore tried to clarify this using data from 247,867 participants in the so-called UK Biobank. For this purpose, the participants were initially divided into four groups with different sleep durations.
How long did the participants sleep?
The first group had a normal sleep duration of seven to eight hours, whereas the participants in the second group slept six hours per day. The participants in the third group only slept five hours per day and the participants in the fourth group had an extremely short sleep duration of three to four hours per day, the researchers report.
Participants' diets were assessed based on population-specific consumption of red meat, processed meat, fruits, vegetables, and fish. In this way, the experts were able to rate the participants' diets on a scale from zero (unhealthiest diet) to five (healthiest diet).
According to the team, a total of 3.2 percent of participants were diagnosed with type 2 diabetes during medical follow-up.
Increased risk with little sleep
After adjusting for possible confounding variables, the researchers found that a daily sleep duration of five hours or less was associated with a significantly increased risk of type 2 diabetes.
Participants who slept only five hours per day had a 16 percent increased risk of diabetes and people who only slept three to four hours per day reported a 41 percent increased risk of diabetes compared to people with normal sleep duration the team.
In general, the participants with the healthiest eating habits had a lower risk of developing type 2 diabetes. However, the connection found between short sleep duration and an increased risk of type 2 diabetes also remained in these participants, the experts added.
Also read:
- Sleep problems increase the risk of diabetes
- Significantly increased risk of diabetes due to these sleeping habits
- Diabetes: Sleep problems affect blood sugar regulation after meals
Overall, according to the team, the results suggest that people with habitually short sleep duration have a significantly increased risk of type 2 diabetes and that this association persists even if those affected eat a healthy diet.
The team believes further longitudinal studies are now needed to verify the results of the current research. Such studies should include repeated sleep measurements with objective assessments and also evaluate the participants' eating habits, the researchers conclude. (as)
