Photo Credit: Fizkes

Short sleep duration for 6 weeks impairs insulin sensitivity in women, according to a study published in Diabetes Care. Faris M. Zuraikat, PhD, and colleagues examined whether prolonged mild sleep restriction (SR), resembling real-world short sleep, impaired glucose metabolism in 36 women aged 20 to 75, without cardiometabolic diseases, with a total sleep time of 7 to 9 hours/night in a randomized crossover study. The study included two 6-week phases: maintenance of adequate sleep (AS) and 1.5 hours/night SR. Total sleep time was reduced by 1.34 ±0.04 hours/night with SR versus AS in linear models adjusted for baseline outcome values. With SR versus AS, fasting insulin and homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) values were increased; the effects on HOMA-IR were more pronounced in postmenopausal women. Changes in adiposity did not mediate the effects of SR on glucose metabolism; when changes in adiposity were included as a covariate, the results were not altered in the total sample.