Diabetes And Sleep Disorders

Sleep Disorders

Diabetes And Sleep Disorders

Diabetes is a disease in which the body is unable to produce or appropriately use insulin, while a sleep disorder also known as somnipathy refers to the disruption in the normal sleep patterns of a person or animal. A new case study presented at the annual meeting of the American Diabetes Society advocates that healthy young people who habitually got less than 6.5 hours of sleep a night had greater insulin resistance. Contrary to this people who got 7.5 to 8.5 hours of rest had a lesser insulin resistance. This is an issue of prime concern, as insulin resistance is the condition that often leads to Type 2 diabetes.

The connection between the two diseases is relevant from the fact that many people who suffer from sleep deprivation because of a sleep disorder are also affected with diabetes. Studies have proved that sleep is necessary for the efficient functioning of a normal immune system and to sustain the capacity to fight disease and sickness. Sleep is also important for the normal working of the nervous system and for a regular, healthy cell growth. It is also seen that obesity and lack of appropriate exercise tends to aggravate the occurrence of diabetes. Obesity can be prevented to a large extent if a person gets adequate sleep of more than 7 hours along with other precautions. People suffering from different types of sleep disorders experience fatigue and generally tend to remain dull and weak, as a result of which regular exercise becomes an impossibility. Slow-wave sleep (stages 3 and 4) has also been found to be important in maintenance of stable glucose levels. A University of Chicago study found that supressions of slow-wave sleep increases blood sugar levels, and the authors speculate that the decline in sleep quality in older adults may contribute to the increase in risk of diabetes.

Studies and researches have also shown that people with a frequent breathing disorder, which strikes while they are asleep, increases the risk of their being prone to diabetes later in life. A link between obstructive sleep apnea and early signs of diabetes has also been established. Doctors have also found that half of apnea patients seemed to have symptoms of a diabetes-related metabolic disorder. Some claim that short-term sleep loss causes glucose intolerance and hence a pre-diabetic state.

Diabetes and sleep disorders are grave problems that are being faced by a large number of people residing in the US. Increased work pressure combined with growing anxiety and tensions are a leading cause of sleep disorders among both young and old alike. Thus care should be taken to minimize occurrences of sleep disorders by taking adequate precautions.