Can a Lack of Sleep Increase Your Chance of Developing Diabetes?

Check out this answer from Consensus:

The evidence strongly suggests that both insufficient and excessive sleep durations are associated with an increased risk of developing type 2 diabetes. Poor sleep quality and sleep disorders further exacerbate this risk. Mechanistically, sleep disturbances impact glucose metabolism and insulin sensitivity, contributing to the development of diabetes. Therefore, maintaining an optimal sleep duration of 7-8 hours per night and ensuring good sleep quality are important for diabetes prevention.

The relationship between sleep and the risk of developing diabetes has been a subject of extensive research. Various studies have investigated how sleep duration and quality impact metabolic health, particularly focusing on the development of type 2 diabetes (T2D).

Key Insights

• Short Sleep Duration and Increased Diabetes Risk:
  • Short sleep duration (<6 hours) is associated with a higher risk of developing type 2 diabetes. This relationship is observed across different populations and age groups1 3 6 7 9.
  • In children and adolescents, short sleep duration is linked to adverse T2D biomarkers, although this association can be influenced by factors like adiposity, maturity, sex, and age2.
• Long Sleep Duration and Diabetes Risk:
  • Both short (<6 hours) and long (>8 hours) sleep durations are associated with an increased risk of type 2 diabetes, indicating a U-shaped relationship where the lowest risk is observed at 7-8 hours of sleep per day3 9.
• Sleep Quality and Diabetes:
  • Poor sleep quality, including conditions like insomnia and obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), is linked to a higher risk of developing diabetes. OSA, in particular, shows a strong association with increased diabetes risk1 4 7 8.
• Mechanisms Linking Sleep and Diabetes:
  • Experimental studies show that sleep restriction can lead to insulin resistance and reduced glucose tolerance, which are precursors to diabetes. These effects are mediated through hormonal changes that affect appetite and glucose metabolism4 6 7.
  • Sleep disturbances can lead to increased hunger and caloric intake, contributing to weight gain and obesity, which are significant risk factors for diabetes4 7.
• Impact of Sleep Interventions:
  • Interventions aimed at extending sleep duration have shown potential benefits in improving glucose metabolism and reducing fatigue, particularly in high-risk groups such as women with a history of gestational diabetes5.

Can a lack of sleep increase your chance of developing diabetes?

John Axelsson has answered Near Certain

An expert from Karolinska Institutet in Sleep Research, Cognitive Science, Psychology, Immunology

There is today strong support for insufficient sleep (either disturbed or short) and shiftwork to increase the risk for developing type-2 diabetes. For meta-analyses and systematic reviews see:

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/?term=25290038

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/?term=26687279

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/?term=25030030

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/?term=19910503

Summarized and discussed here

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27803010

Can a lack of sleep increase your chance of developing diabetes?

V Mohan has answered Likely

An expert from Independent in Endocrinology

Yes, there are a lot of studies which suggest that lack of sleep can increase the chances of developing diabetes and other metabolic diseases. In fact, the biology of circadian rhythm has also been attracting a lot of attention recently. Interestingly some recent unpublished data shows that both less sleep as well as too much sleep are linked to diabetes risk and indeed even to mortality. The optimum sleep recommended is 6-8 hours per day.