Objective: Experimental sleep deprivation is accompanied by changes in glucose regulation. However, the effects of chronic sleep insufficiency on insulin secretion and action in populations at high risk for type 2 diabetes are not known. This study examined the relationship between objectively documented habitual sleep curtailment and measures of insulin sensitivity, insulin secretion, and oral glucose tolerance in free-living adults with parental history of type 2 diabetes.
Research design and methods: A total of 47 healthy participants with parental history of type 2 diabetes (26 female/21 male, mean [SD] age 26 [4] years and BMI 23.8 [2.5] kg/m(2)) completed 13 (SD = 2) days of sleep and physical activity monitoring by wrist actigraphy and waist accelerometry while following their usual lifestyle at home. Laboratory polysomnography was used to screen for sleep disorders. Indices of diabetes risk based on oral glucose tolerance tests were compared between participants with habitual short sleep and those with usual sleep duration >6 h/day.
Results: Consistent with a behavioral pattern of habitual sleep curtailment, short sleepers obtained an average of 1.5 h less sleep per night and showed signs of increased sleep pressure. Participants who habitually curtailed their sleep had considerably higher indices of insulin resistance and increased insulin secretion but maintained normal glucose tolerance similar to that of subjects who slept more.
Conclusions: Young lean adults with parental history of type 2 diabetes who habitually curtail their sleep have increased insulin resistance and compensatory hyperinsulinemia--a pattern that has been associated with higher risk of developing diabetes in such susceptible individuals.
Trial registration: ClinicalTrials.gov NCT00721084.