Do you know that Sleep can affect your Blood Sugar Levels? Yes Sleep has an effect on your Blood Sugar Level and vice versa. It is actually a vicious cycle.
Effect of Sleep on Blood Sugar Level
Your Blood Sugar level increases as your sleep decreases. If you are experiencing lack of sleep at night, you are more likely to develop diabetic issues. Long-Lasting Fat Metabolism at night can increase your Blood Sugar Level and reduce your sleep time. Research done at Boston University School of Medicine shows higher Blood Sugar levels for people sleeping less than 6 hours in the night. It is in comparison with those who get 8 hours or more sleep at night.
Sleepless and restless nights can hurt your mood and energy creating more stress to the body. As body stress increases, the Blood Sugar level also increases. High Blood Sugar is known as Hyperglycemia. To reduce the Sugar level, Kidneys will try to get rid of it via urination. This in turn reduces your sleep as you may need to get up a number of times during night. You may also feel thirsty due to it.
Improper Digestion
Not all food items digest easily. The Fat content and the type of food you eat during night plays a big role in getting proper sleep. For youngsters it may not be an issue but for those who are 50 plus, can be affected. This also can raise your Blood Sugar level and you may not get proper sleep during night.
Dawn Phenomenon
Body releases growth and other hormones between 3am and 4am to prepare your body for arousal. This is known as Dawn Phenomenon. This makes you wake up to a high Blood Sugar in the morning. Your Blood Sugar reading may be normal just before going to bed but you will see a rise in the level in the morning. These hormones make the body less sensitive to insulin. Insulin helps in lowering the Blood Sugar. For those who are diabetic, these changes can lead to spike in the Blood Sugar level in the morning.
Read More about Sleep and Diabetes
Disclaimer:
The above information has been gathered from various sources. The effect can be different from person to person depending upon the health and other conditions. Consult with your doctor if you feel that your Blood Sugar levels are below or above the normal and follow the doctor’s advice.
