The Impact of Sleep on Blood Sugar Levels: How Lack of Sleep Can Increase the Risk of Diabetes

KOMPAS.com – Sleep can affect many things, including blood sugar levels.

Quoting WebMD, diet and obesity may be factors that contribute greatly to blood sugar and diabetes.

However, lack of sleep also has the same effect because it can impact cell responses to insulin.

Also read: 11 things that cause high blood sugar without realizing it

Insulin is a hormone that plays a role in moving sugar in the blood (glucose) to cells throughout the body to be used as fuel (energy) as needed.

When glucose is transported by insulin to body cells, the levels circulating in the blood can decrease.

In one study, more than 4,000 people reported the amount of sleep they got each night.

Also read: 11 Ways to Treat High Blood Sugar Naturally

Those who got less than 6 hours were twice as likely to have cells that were less sensitive to insulin or to suffer from severe diabetes.

This even happened after the researchers took into account their other lifestyle habits.

This article will further comment on the influence of sleep on our blood sugar levels.

Also read: 4 Types of Fruit to Avoid When Blood Sugar is High

The effect of lack of sleep on blood sugar levels

Quoting the Sleep Foundation, the following physiological factors play a role in the relationship between sleep and blood sugar:

Lack of sleep can increase cortisol. Cortisol is a hormone that influences our sleep-wake cycle.

When the amount is high, this hormone stimulates the release of blood sugar stored in the liver and muscles (in the form of glycogen). As a result, blood sugar levels can increase.

Also read: 6 Choice Fruits to Overcome High Blood Sugar

Lack of sleep can reduce your insulin sensitivity. As a result, it can cause high blood sugar levels and increase the risk of diabetes.

During sleep, the growth hormone (human growth hormone/HGH) produced by the body will increase. Simultaneously, glucose levels will increase.

When you sleep, oxidative stress in the body can be reduced. When you don’t get enough sleep, oxidative stress can increase.

Oxidative stress is when antioxidant levels are lower than free radicals in the body. This can increase blood sugar levels.

Also read: Eating Guidelines for Overcoming High Blood Sugar

C-reactive protein (CRP) is a protein produced by the liver in response to inflammation in the body.

High C-reactive Protein levels are a risk factor for diabetes.

Lack of sleep can cause C-reactive protein levels to increase.

IL-6 and TNF-alpha are markers of inflammation. Increased amounts of IL-6 and TNF-alpha can cause insulin resistance which results in high blood sugar levels.

Meanwhile, the increase in these inflammatory markers can be high due to lack of sleep.

Thus, having quality sleep at night is very important for managing your blood sugar levels.

The Indonesian Ministry of Health recommends that the ideal sleep time for adults is 7-8 hours every day. Have you implemented it?

Also read: Is sleeping after eating bad for your health? This is the explanation…

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2024-01-12 15:00:00
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