Sleep Apnea and Diabetes

It’s recently been shown that sleep deprivation is associated with increased body weight, and also with the metabolic syndrome. So it may not be too surprising that it can also increase the risk of developing type 2 diabetes. Yale scientists reported this at the American Thoracic Society meeting.

Over 540 patients referred for sleep lab studies who did not have diabetes were included in the study. They were classified according to their apnea-hypopnea index – a score for the severity of sleep apnea. The risk of developing type 2 diabetes in the next 5 years was nearly 3 times greater in people with obstructive sleep apnea (i.e. in the top ¾ of the apnea-hypopnea scorers). Obesity had about the same effect on the development of diabetes. (These associations were independent of smoking, age, gender, and race.)

If you think you (or a loved one) have sleep apnea, get to a sleep lab and have it checked. Getting treatment will please you and your sleeping partner, and may prevent you from developing diabetes.