Getting enough sleep is not only essential for feeling refreshed the next day, but it's also a cornerstone of long-term health. But more importantly: the total hours of sleep or the consistency of those hours? A new study highlights the importance of maintaining a regular sleep pattern in preventing type 2 diabetes.
A study published in the journal Science shows that irregular sleep patterns increase the risk of diabetes by 34% Magazine Diabetes Care.
“Our study identifies a modifiable lifestyle factor that can help reduce the risk of developing type 2 diabetes. Our findings highlight the importance of consistent sleep patterns as a strategy to reduce type 2 diabetes,” Brigham said. said lead author Sina Kianersi of Women's Hospital. Press Releases.
To uncover the link between sleep patterns and type 2 diabetes, researchers examined the UK Biobank study, analyzing acceleration data from more than 84,000 participants. The average age of the participants was 62 years, 57% were female, 97% were white, and all were initially free of diabetes. Participants wore accelerometers to monitor their movements for a week, and their diabetes development was tracked primarily through medical records for approximately 7.5 years.
“Researchers found that, after adjusting for a wide range of risk factors, more irregular sleep duration was associated with a higher risk of diabetes. The association was stronger among individuals with longer sleep duration and lower polygenic risk scores for diabetes,” News The manuscript is called.
Compared with participants with regular sleep patterns, participants with irregular sleep patterns (day sleep duration fluctuating by more than 60 minutes) had a 34% higher risk of developing diabetes. The researchers noted that the increased risk remained, albeit slightly reduced, even after adjusting for lifestyle factors, comorbidities, family history and obesity indicators.
The study has certain limitations. Some lifestyle data were collected five years before the accelerometer study began, which may affect accuracy. Additionally, tracking sleep for only 7 days may not reflect long-term patterns. Because participants were mostly healthy, older, white men, they may not be representative of a more diverse population.
However, Kianersi said, “these findings have the potential to improve diabetes prevention on multiple levels.”
“Clinically, they may inform better patient care and treatment planning. Public health guidelines can promote regular sleep patterns. However, more research is needed to fully understand this mechanism and confirm results in other populations, Kianersi added.