09-19-2006
Getting fewer hours of sleep or lower-quality sleep may be associated with poorer blood glucose control among African-Americans with diabetes, according to an article in the September 18 issue of Archives of Internal Medicine, a theme issue on sleep.
Many individuals in modern society experience a chronic lack of adequate sleep, either because they voluntarily stay up late or because they have difficulty sleeping, according to background information in the article. Accumulating evidence suggests that restricting sleep may affect the ability of the body to process sugar (glucose) into energy, thereby increasing risk for the development of diabetes. Additional studies indicate that the reverse may be true, and that type 2 diabetes-which occurs when the body loses the ability to respond to the insulin that converts glucose into energy-may contribute to sleep problems.
[SOURCE: JAMA, September 2006]
