Sleep difficulties are more common in people who have diabetes than in people who don’t.
Research has shown that sleep deprivation and insulin resistance may be linked.
The reason this is true is that people who dont get enough sleep are more prone to eating higher carbohydrate meals!
Also I noticed myself that when I am out for a night out especially after drinking some alcohol I eat a lot more processed unhealthy food the following day!
This is because sleep deprivation and alcohol cause unstable blood sugar levels!
People who regularly lack sleep will feel more tired through the day and more likely to eat comfort foods.
A good night’s sleep is important for our hormones to regulate a large number of the body’s processes, such as appetite, weight control and the immune system. Sleep can affect your blood sugar levels and your blood glucose control can also affect your sleep, which results in trouble sleeping.
Difficulty getting a good night’s rest could be a result of a number of reasons, from hypos at night, to high blood sugars, sleep apnea, being overweight or signs of neuropathy.
If you have blood sugar levels that are either too high or too low overnight, you may find yourself tired through the next day.
Lethargy and insomnia can both have their roots in poor blood sugar control.
1.Sleep Deprivation and Insulin Resistance
Controlling blood sugar levels is one of the most powerful ways to reduce your risk of chronic diseases, including high blood pressure, heart disease, and cancer. The increase in Type 2 diabetes we’re now seeing is largely due lot of people eating high carbohydrate meals and lack of exercise.
People who dont get an adequate amount of sleep are more prone to getting Type 2 diabetes because sleep deprivation causes people to want to eat more high carbohydrate meals!
Eating too much carbohydrate foods causes insulin resistance which leads to Type 2 diabetes!
Insulin resistance is when a person has not enough insulin to break down all the carbohydrate into energy needed for the body.
Also eating too many carbohydrates causes your blood sugar levels to rise too high which can lead to ketones in the blood.
This can lead to ketoacidosis which is a very serious medical condition associated with insulin dependent diabetes!
To read more about this click here!
2.Sleep Has Serious Consequences To Your Metabolism
The Harvard Medical School Guide to a Good Night’s Sleep (Harvard Medical School Guides)
Sleep deprivation tends to lead to food cravings, particularly for sweet and starchy foods.
If you’re chronically sleep deprived, consistently giving in to these sugar cravings will virtually guarantee that you’ll gain weight.
This is a surefire way to gain weight, as a lack of insulin will seriously impair your body’s ability to burn and digest fat.
It also increases your risk of Type 2 diabetes. In short, sleep deprivation can lead to insulin resistance, which can lead to increased weight and decreased health.
3.Blood Sugar and Sleep Problems
Sleep can affect your blood sugar levels, and your blood glucose control can also affect your sleep. It’s a vicious cycle.
People who have diabetes often get low blood sugar levels at night and this causes sleep deprivation!
Low blood sugar levels can lead to hypoglycemia!For more information about hypoglycemia click here!
Also diabetics can experience high blood sugar levels at night which results in frequent urinating,feeling thirsty and also can lead to a coma which is a very deep sleep and even death!
High blood sugar levels can lead to hyperglycemia!For more information about hyperglycemia click here!
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4.Diabetes and Sleep Apnea
Sleep apnea is a sleep disorder in which your breathing stops and restarts while you’re asleep. These pauses can last for anywhere between a few seconds to minutes, and can happen 30 times or more during one hour of sleep.
When your breathing stops, your body snaps out of a deep restful sleep. People with sleep apnea are often tired during the day because they aren’t getting good quality sleep.
There are two different types of sleep apnea.
Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is the most common. This is when your airways collapse or become blocked while you’re sleeping.
Central sleep apnea (CSA) is less common. This is when your brain doesn’t send the right signals to the muscles that control your breathing.
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5.Diabetic Neuropathy And Sleep Problems
When dealing with neuropathy, you might think insomnia is the least of your problems. The effects of neuropathy symptoms and sleep disturbances are difficult.
Neuropathy can affect sleep in several ways.
For some people, neuropathy symptoms, such as abnormal sensations or hypersensitivity to touch, particularly in the feet and legs, may make it difficult to fall asleep or stay asleep.
Without daytime distractions such as work, friends or hobbies, many diabetics find themselves focusing more on the pain in the evening, reporting that their perception of pain actually increases when trying to sleep.
For others, sleep disturbances can aggravate neuropathy symptoms. For example, sleep deprivation can lower your pain threshold and make the neuropathic pain feel worse.
People who sleep poorly are susceptible to depression and other mood disorders, changes in eating, decrease in physical activity and an overall decline in health. Compounded with neuropathy, this becomes a vicious cycle.
If sleep problems interfere with your ability to function, it may be time to consult your doctor.
Describe your sleep symptoms to your doctor, the effects of sleep symptoms on your daily activities and neuropathy, and medication history. That’s because many prescription medications and some herbal remedies can affect the quality of your sleep.
After evaluating your neuropathy symptoms and sleep problems – as well as ruling out other causes of sleep disturbances – your doctor will review with you:
Self-help techniques – These are techniques you can adopt (see section below on tips for a better night sleep)
Non-pharmacological treatments – These include cognitive behavioral therapy, relaxation techniques and stress management .
They are preferred to prescription sleep medications, which can lead to sleepiness during the day, cause dependency and have side effects.
Pharmacological treatments – Used as a last resort, these should only be used temporarily, especially when the insomnia is chronic. Sometimes, medicines used to reduce pain or aid sleep can affect your sleep.
Over-the-counter pain medications – For mild pain, over-the-counter pain medications , such as Tylenol and Advil, may suffice. Some over-the-counter pain medications, such as Advil PM or Tylenol PM, also have an antihistamine to help with sleep.
Prescription medications—For more severe or chronic pain, your doctor may recommend prescription pain medications such as codeine, and morphine. Some antidepressants and anticonvulsants can also be prescribed.
To help with sleep, your doctor might recommend drugs typically prescribed for anxiety, called benzodiazepines (e.g., lorazepam, clonazepam, triazolam), and nonbenzodiazepine hypnotics that are particularly helpful for sleep and appear to be better for longer-term use than benzodiazepines (e.g., zolpidem, eszopiclone, zaleplon).
Poor sleep, depressed mood and anxiety can complicate you(and your doctor’s) efforts to manage neuropathic pain. The key is to recognize this and work with your doctor to find the right treatments and approaches that work best for you.
6.Link Between Insomnia and Diabetes
Sleep gives the body time to relax and repair and is now also understood to play a role in learning. Insomnia, however, is one of the most common complaints , and it also has a link to Type 2 diabetes. Sleep deprivation can make diabetes worse, and diabetes symptoms can make it harder to sleep.
Insomnia isn’t just an occasional rough night or sleeping less than you think you should.
The key question to determine if you have insomnia is “how rested do I feel?”
If you have all the energy and alertness you want, you don’t have insomnia, no matter how little sleep you get. On the other hand, if you’re tired and drowsy all day, you may have insomnia, even if you’re in bed 12 hours a night.
The quality of sleep is as important as the quantity. For example, if you’re struggling for breath all night or your body can’t relax because of stress and tension, you may not feel rested no matter how much you sleep.
There are at least three kinds of insomnia: problems getting to sleep, problems staying asleep, and waking up too early and not being able to go back to sleep.
Problems getting to sleep (sleep-onset insomnia) are often due to stress, too much activity or anxiety at bedtime, or bad sleep habits.
Problems staying asleep (sleep-maintenance insomnia) are often due to medical problems such as sleep apnea or an enlarged prostate. We all wake up 12–15 times a night, but we usually get right back to sleep without ever realizing or remembering we’ve been awake. It’s insomnia if you can’t get back to sleep easily.
Problems with waking up too early are often a sign of depression, or they may be caused by noise and light in the bedroom.
While sleeplessness can promote Type 2 diabetes, symptoms associated with high blood glucose, low blood glucose (hypoglycemia), and some diabetes complications can also interfere with sleep.
If your blood glucose level is high, you may be in the bathroom urinating every few hours during the night.
Hypoglycemia can cause hunger that wakes you up to get food, a rapid heartbeat, dizziness or shaking.
Fatigue from a poor night’s sleep may keep some people with diabetes from getting enough daytime activity, which in turn makes it harder to sleep the following night.
Both insomnia and “hypersomnia” (sleeping too much) are classic symptoms of depression.
If you lie in bed having thoughts of hopelessness or worthlessness, especially in the early morning, you may be depressed. Because depression is a risk factor for other problems and because it is treatable, you should seek professional help.
TIPS FOR A BETTER NIGHT SLEEP
Getting into a consistent sleep routine will improve your overall health and you will see improvements in blood sugar as well.
People are more prone to sitting in the couch and watching television and that’s alright for awhile but if you spend too long doing this you can end up putting on a lot of weight!
Also spending too long sitting on the couch can make you feel tired!
Also sitting around watching too much television takes up a lot of time that could be spent on more active hobbies like running,cycling,swimming,horse riding,gardening and fishing!
The most important thing to remember is that people are very inactive nowadays!
The television can also be very negative sometimes giving young people the wrong idea!
The most important point to remember is the evening time is a time for relaxing and unwinding!
I love lying on the couch reading a book,gazing into the fire dreaming about this site hoping it will help people!
I think that this life is so short we might as well make the most of it!
I got a new three piece sofa the other day I love it!
It is brown suede which was bought in Affordable Luxury in County Waterford!
Also I got six cream cushions in Home Depot on sale for a hundred euros!
I was wondering what type of couches people had in their homes!
Why dont we start a discussion to see what type of couch is the most popular?
The following sleep tips may help to promote better sleep:
1.Check and monitor your blood glucose to keep it under control. The more balanced your blood sugar is during the day, the better you will sleep at night. The better you sleep, the less likely it is that you will gain weight, or develop type 2 diabetes, or any of the other health issues associated with a lack of sleep.
2.Establish a regular bedtime routine
3.Ensure your bed is large and comfortable enough
4,Ensure your room is cool and well ventilated
5.Ensure your room is dark and free from noise
6.Incorporating a period of exercise into each day.Keep in mind that stress,emotional and/or physical can can blood sugar issues . Use herbs to decrease your stress levels as well as exercise !
7.Keep a regular sleep/wake schedule.
8.Develop a bedtime ritual, such as taking a warm bath or reading light material.
9.Limit or eliminate caffeine four to six hours before bed and minimize daytime use.
10.Avoid smoking, especially near bedtime or if you awake in the middle of the night.
11.Avoid alcohol and heavy meals before you go to bed.
12.Turn off your TV, smartphone, iPad and computer a few hours before your bedtime.
13.You also can adopt relaxation techniques to help induce sleep. These include giving yourself an extra hour before bed to relax and unwind, and time to plan for the following day,meditating,doing deep breathing exercises.
14.Listen to restful music or nature sounds or a relaxation tape.
15.Put on socks so that cold feet don’t keep you awake.
16.Lose weight, overweight makes it harder to sleep and can cause sleep apnea. Another reason to get in shape.
17.Temperature can also be a factor. An overactive radiator could have you waking up in a sweat, so be sure to set your thermostat appropriately.
18.Napping may leave you less tired at bedtime, setting the stage for insomnia.Long naps should be avoided if you have insomnia.
19.Since so many things can hinder or promote sleep, many people find it helpful to keep a sleep diary to figure out what’s keeping them up or what works best to help them sleep.
If you have any information,questions, or feedback you would like to include in this post.
Please email momo19@diabetessupportsite.com or leave your comments below
One of my friends has recently been diagnosed with diabetes, so it’s interesting to find out more information on how I can support her!!
I have to admit, whenever I end up getting a shorter nights sleep – for whatever reason – I do have a tendency to comfort eat in order to raise my energy levels to get me through the day!!
You’ve obviously done your research with regards to this post!!
Thanks for sharing!!
Hi conformancefugitive,
Its great that you found this post interesting and helpful.
Please tell your friend about this website as it would be a helpful resource in managing her diabetes especially if she is just diagnosed.
Hi,
Regarding the subject of diabetes affecting a person regarding sleep that was a brilliantly conceived and extremely thorough article that you wrote to help people who have this disease.
Do you have a background in health/medicine? I ask because I was so impressed with the depth of material that you included in your article, most specifically spelling out a number of factors as to why a person suffering from diabetes may have trouble getting a good night’s sleep regularly.
You also took the time in the end to list a number of recommendations, (more than 12 in all) which would provide a remedy for the person who has this medical condition.
I personally do not have diabetes, having it checked as it is in my family’s history, (aunts/uncles all now deceased on both my parents’ immediately siblings. Still for a person who does have a sleeping disorder, and who also suffers from diabetes what you took the time to compose in this excellent article should be required reading for that individual.
You did a great service for your readers by taking the time to both research and later write this article!
Sincerely,
Jeff
Hi Jeff,
I think all the time and effort I put into this article was well worth it after reading your positive feedback!
To answer your question “Do you have a background in health/medicine?”
My professional background is in Pharmaceutical Research and Development and i am living with Type 1 Diabetes.
Thanks so much for taking the time to leave a comment in this post.