Exposure to bright light at night increases risk of type 2 diabetes by up to 67% |

Bright light at night has been found to increase the risk of type 2 diabetes by up to 67%. This is because the circadian rhythm (biological clock) is disrupted, which has a negative effect on insulin secretion and glucose metabolism.

In a recent paper published in the prestigious medical journal The Lancet Regional Health – Europe, researchers from Flinders University in Australia found evidence that there is a close connection between light exposure and the risk of developing the disease. type 2 sugar.

Type 2 diabetes is a chronic disease that is acquired related to lifestyle factors such as physical inactivity and obesity, and is difficult to cure.

Professor Andrew Phillips, from Flinders University’s School of Medicine and Public Health, said: “We found that exposure to brighter light at night increased the risk of type 2 diabetes 2 to develop.” “Exposure to night light can disrupt the biological rhythm, causing changes in insulin secretion and glucose metabolism,” he said, “If the biological rhythm is disturbed and there are changes insulin secretion and glucose metabolism, this causes the body to regulate blood sugar levels.” “It can affect your ability to do things, and this can lead to the development of type 2 diabetes,” he explained.

He said that the rhythms (both time and intensity) of the central circadian clock are regulated almost entirely by light.

Using data from 85,000 people registered in the UK’s Biobank, the UK’s human resources database, and around 13 million hours of light sensor data, the researchers investigated whether a person’s light exposure patterns could be analyzed for risk diabetes.

The research team attached a device to the wrists of participants without type 2 diabetes and monitored their light during the day and night for a week. After that, participants were monitored for type 2 diabetes over a period of up to 9 years.

Previous research has shown that more light exposure between 12:30pm and 6am is associated with an increased risk of developing type 2 diabetes. It has nothing to do with the amount of light during the day.

Flinders University researchers found that, even after taking into account other factors associated with type 2 diabetes, including participants’ lifestyle habits, sleep patterns, shift work, habits eating and mental health, getting more light at night was still a strong predictor of developing diabetes. got it

We also found that the risk of developing the disease varies according to the amount of light. A linear (proportional) dose-response relationship was observed, with the risk of developing type 2 diabetes being 28% to 67% higher depending on the level of light at night.

This means that blocking light at night could be a low-cost, highly effective measure to eliminate one of the risk factors for developing type 2 diabetes.

Professor Phillips said: “Our findings suggest that reducing light at night and maintaining a dark environment could be an easy and cheap way to prevent or delay diabetes .

Dr. Chelsie Rohrscheib, a neurologist and sleep specialist at Wesper, a sleep specialist, who was not involved in the study, said she was not surprised by the findings.

She said through ‘diaTribe’, a non-profit organization related to diabetes, “Poor sleep quality and reduced sleep duration lead to insulin resistance and glucose intolerance, higher cortisol levels (stress hormones), increased appetite, and increased inflammation. “These are all major factors in the development of type 2 diabetes.”

References
– Personal light exposure patterns and incidence of type 2 diabetes: analysis of 13 million hours of light sensor data and 670,000 person-years of prospective observation
(DOI: 10.1016/j.lanepe.2024.100943)