Rotating Night Shift Work and Type 2 Diabetes in Women

A new study found that the longer women worked rotating night shifts, the greater their risk of developing type 2 diabetes. Researchers also found that extended years of rotating night shift work was associated with weight gain. The weight gain may have contributed to the increased risk of type 2 diabetes.

Women who worked rotating night shifts for three to nine years faced a 20 percent increased risk of type 2 diabetes. Women who worked nights for 10 to 19 years had a 40 percent rise in risk. And women who worked night shifts for over 20 years were 58 percent more at risk. Women who worked rotating night shifts also gained more weight and were more likely to become obese during the follow-up.

Rotating night shift work was defined as three or more night shifts plus day and evening hours each month. The Harvard School of Public Health tracked more than 175,000 U.S. nurses for this study. Findings were published Dec. 6 in the journal PLoS Medicine.

Researchers said the findings need to be confirmed in men and ethnic groups (96 percent of the nurses were white Caucasians). The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that 15 million Americans work full time on evening shifts, night shifts, rotating shifts or other irregular schedules.

Read more about shift work sleep disorder and women’s sleep needs. More stories about sleep and type 2 diabetes are available on the Sleep Education Blog.

Photo by DIAC Images

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Did Sleep Medicine Help Boost U.S. Life Expectancy?

Life expectancy hit an all-time high in 2009, according to a new report from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. An American born in 2009 can now expect to live about 78 years and two months, a two month increase compared to 2008. Only 2.4 million Americans died in 2009, an all-time low and the 10th consecutive yearly decrease. As usual, women (80.6 years) had a longer life expectancy than men (75.7 years).

The CDC speculates that vaccinations, public health measures against smoking and better overall medical treatment for the life span improvements. Sleep medicine may be able to share some of the credit.

Deaths from heart disease, Alzheimer’s disease and diabetes – three diseases commonly associated with sleep apnea - all decreased in 2009. This raises the question, is an increase in awareness and treatment of sleep apnea contributing to these rates and helping Americans live longer?

Research shows that people with untreated severe sleep apnea are more than twice as likely to die. Even moderate cases increase the overall risk of death by 17 percent.

Diagnosis and treatment of sleep apnea may prevent countless deaths from heart disease. The pauses in breathing from untreated obstructive sleep apnea can put enormous strain on your heart. Heart disease risks associated with this include coronary heart disease, heart attack and congestive heart failure.

CPAP and other sleep apnea treatments may also slow the development of diabetes. Sleep disorders that disrupt sleep, including but not limited to sleep apnea increases the likelihood of getting diabetes.

Treatment can also limit sleep loss related to sleep apnea, which is a factor in the development of Alzheimer’s disease. CPAP also helps slow the cognitive decline of people with Alzheimer’s.

Think you might have sleep apnea? Find out by scheduling an overnight sleep study for diagnosis. it could save your life in the long run and help.

Note: The average life expectancy in the U.S. is still among the lowest of the developed western nations. The National Research Council reports that the heavy smoking in the past five decades has long figured for the slower growth in life expectancy. The national obesity epidemic is expected to offset the eventual gains from the recent reduction in smoking. Excess body weight a primary risk factor for heart disease and diabetes as well as sleep apnea.

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Sleep Disorder Shares Blame for Early Type 2 Diabetes

Type 2 diabetes early in life is commonly associated with obesity, but in many cases there may be another factor at play. Obstructive sleep apnea, a common untreated sleeping disorder in teens, can contribute to the onset of diabetes.

A study in the September issue of SLEEP reports sleep apnea worsens insulin resistance. Insulin resistance is a risk factor for type 2 diabetes as well as metabolic syndrome.

The link between sleep apnea and insulin resistance wasn’t fully clear until now. The presence of obesity and the onset of puberty complicated the relationship.

The study involved a group of 98 obese children of both genders. About half of the participating children had signs of sleep apnea.

Children were recruited from two age groups: pre and post puberty.
Each child was screened for obstructive sleep apnea using an overnight sleep study, and assessed for insulin resistance.

Results show children who tested positive for sleep apnea had worse insulin resistance, thus were at higher risk for type 2 diabetes and metabolic syndrome.

Sleep apnea isn’t the only sleep disorder that can lead to diabetes. A past study shows severe sleep loss from long-term insomnia can also worsen insulin resistance.

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Frequent Naps & Type 2 Diabetes in Older Adults

A new study examined the relationship between napping and type 2 diabetes in older Chinese adults. The results were published yesterday in the journal Sleep.

The study involved 19,567 people in China between the ages of 50 and 93 years. About 71 percent of participants were women.

They received a physical exam. They also answered questions about their lifestyle and medical history. This included questions about their napping habits and daytime sleepiness.

Results show that 13.5 percent of the sample had type 2 diabetes. The rate of diabetes was 36 percent higher in people who reported napping four to six times per week. It was 28 percent higher in people who napped daily.

The results were unchanged when people with potential ill health and daytime sleepiness were removed from the analysis. This suggests that it is less likely that diabetes leads to daytime sleepiness. Instead the results raise the possibility that napping may increase the risk of diabetes.

But more research is needed to determine if napping plays a causative role in the development of diabetes. Many other factors may be involved in older adults.

“In many non-Mediterranean, Western countries a large proportion of those that nap are generally older or have other conditions that cause tiredness and create an urge to nap,” lead author Neil Thomas told the AASM. “The napping can therefore be a marker of disease.”

According to the authors, napping is a social norm in China. It is practiced at all ages starting in childhood. At least one nap per week was reported by 67 percent of participants. About 59 percent of these people reported napping daily.

The authors also noted that napping and diabetes were associated even though physical activity levels were higher in nappers. Physical activity has been shown to reduce the risk of diabetes.

Read more about naps and sleep and type 2 diabetes.

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Sleep Apnea & Glucose Control in Type 2 Diabetes

A new study examined obstructive sleep apnea and glucose control in people with type 2 diabetes.

The study involved 60 diabetic adults. They were monitored during an overnight sleep study. Blood samples measured glucose control.

Results show that 77 percent of participants had sleep apnea. And increasing OSA severity was associated with worse glucose control.

"Reducing the severity of OSA may improve glycemic control," lead author Dr. Renee S. Aronsohn said in a press release. "Thus effective treatment of OSA may represent a novel and non-pharmacologic intervention in the management of type 2 diabetes."

Only five people in the study had been previously evaluated for sleep apnea. None were undergoing treatment.

It is estimated that about 80 percent of men and 90 percent of women with moderate to severe sleep apnea are undiagnosed. The most common treatment for sleep apnea is CPAP therapy.

The NIDDK reports that diabetes is a disease in which blood glucose levels are above normal. Most food is broken down into glucose, which is also known as “blood sugar.”

Insulin, a hormone produced by the pancreas, then moves glucose from the blood into the cells. There the glucose becomes a primary source of fuel for the body.

Type 2 diabetes occurs when the body fails to use insulin effectively. This is known as “insulin resistance.” Then the body produces less insulin over time.

As a result glucose builds up in the blood and passes out of the body through urine. This deprives the body of its main fuel source.

Preliminary data indicate that diabetes was the seventh-leading cause of death in the U.S. in 2007. A study published last week estimated that in 2007 diabetes cost the U.S. $218 billion.

On SleepEducation.com you can learn more about how sleep loss and sleep disorders are linked to diabetes. Read more about sleep and type 2 diabetes.

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