Adults who sleep five hours or less a day have a significantly higher risk of developing type 2 diabetes, according to new research from Uppsala University (Sweden) in which 247,867 people (52.3% women) with diabetes participated. an average age of 55.9 years, and which also shows that chronic lack of sleep cannot be compensated for by eating a healthy diet alone.
Type 2 diabetes affects the body’s ability to process sugar, making it difficult to absorb insulin and causing high blood glucose levels. According to a report published in 2020, more than 462 million people suffer from this disease which, over time, can cause serious damage, especially to nerves and blood vessels, and constitutes a growing public health problem worldwide.
To analyze the link between type 2 diabetes and poor sleep the researchers used data from the UK Biobank, in which almost half a million UK participants were genetically mapped and answered questions about health and lifestyle. They followed participants for more than 10 years and found that a sleep duration of between three and five hours was linked to an increased risk of developing type 2 diabetes.
In contrast, healthy eating habits led to a lower risk of developing the disease, but even people who ate healthily but slept less than six hours a day still had a higher risk of developing type 2 diabetes. The results have been published in JAMA Network Open.
Prioritizing sleep is key to protecting health
“Previous research has shown that repeated short daily rest increases the risk of type 2 diabetes, while healthy eating habits, such as eating fruits and vegetables regularly, can reduce the risk. However, it is still unclear whether people who sleep too little can reduce the risk of developing type 2 diabetes by eating healthily,” said Diana Noga, a sleep researcher at the Department of Pharmaceutical Biosciences at Uppsala University.
People who ate healthy but slept less than six hours a day still had a higher risk of type 2 diabetes.
“Our results are the first to call into question whether a healthy diet can compensate for lack of sleep in terms of type 2 diabetes risk. They should not be a cause for concern, but rather be seen as a reminder that sleep plays an important role.” in health,” explains Christian Benedict, associate professor and sleep researcher at the Department of Pharmaceutical Biosciences at Uppsala University and lead researcher behind the study.
Benedict also maintains that the effects of lack of sleep vary between individuals, depending on things like genetics and a person’s actual need for sleep. “In general, I recommend prioritizing sleep, although I understand that’s not always possible, especially as a parent of four teenagers,” he adds. The researchers have written in their article that “to validate these findings, further longitudinal studies are needed, incorporating repeated measures of sleep (including objective assessments) and dietary habits.”
