12 September 2023 , 06:45
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A common sleeping habit could be a silent contributor to the growing diabetes epidemic.
Being a "night owl" or staying up late increases the risk of the condition by 19% compared to early risers, a recent study has found. The research suggests that women who have an "evening chronotype", meaning they go to bed and wake up late, are more likely to lead unhealthy lifestyles.
Tianyi Huang, an associate epidemiologist at Brigham and Women's Hospitals ' Channing Division of Network Medicine in the US, explained: "Chronotype, or circadian preference, refers to a person's preferred timing of sleep and waking and is partly genetically determined so it may be difficult to change." He added a cautionary note for those who identify as 'night owls', stating: "People who think they are 'night owls' may need to pay more attention to their lifestyle because their evening chronotype may add increased risk for type 2 diabetes."
The researchers analysed data from nearly 64,000 women participating in the Nurses' Health Study II, one of the largest investigations into the risk factors for major chronic diseases in women in the US, spanning from 2009 to 2017, reports the Daily Record. The study took into account various factors including self-reported sleeping habits, diet, weight and body mass index, sleep timing, smoking behaviour, alcohol use, physical activity and family history of diabetes. Medical records were also examined to determine if the participants had diabetes.
Interestingly, of those participating in the study, 11% reported having a definite evening chronotype while about 35% reported a definite morning chronotype. In a fascinating revelation, individuals who neither identify as morning nor evening persons were labelled as intermediate. After adjusting for lifestyle factors, researchers found that being an evening person was linked to a 19% heightened risk of diabetes.
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Interestingly, among those leading the healthiest lifestyles, only a mere 6% were evening types, in stark contrast to the 25% of night owls who confessed to having unhealthy lifestyles. Evening folks also exhibited a propensity to consume alcohol in larger quantities, adhere to a low-quality diet, sleep fewer hours per night, smoke currently, and have weight, BMI, and physical activity rates in the unhealthy spectrum, the research team noted.
Dr Sina Kianersi, a postdoctoral research fellow at the Channing Division of Network Medicine, commented: "When we controlled for unhealthy lifestyle behaviours, the strong association between chronotype and diabetes risk was reduced but still remained, which means that lifestyle factors explain a notable proportion of this association."
The link between evening chronotype and diabetes risk was more pronounced in nurses working day shifts compared to their night shift counterparts. This suggests that "more personalised work scheduling could be beneficial", according to the researchers. The scientists are now gearing up to delve into the genetic causes of chronotype and its connection with heart disease.
In a groundbreaking revelation, Dr Kianersi stated: "If we are able to determine a causal link between chronotype and diabetes or other diseases, physicians could better tailor prevention strategies for their patients." This potentially game-changing research has been published in the esteemed journal, the Annals of Internal Medicine, promising a new dawn in personalized medical prevention strategies.
* This article was crafted with the help of an AI tool, which speeds up The Mirror's editorial research. An editor reviewed this content before it was published. You can report any errors to [email protected]