Dia-stress vs Sleep
A study published by “The Science of Diabetes Self-Management and Care” linked type 1 diabetes distress and poor sleep quality. What is diabetes distress?
Diabetes distress is the inability to regulate emotional responses due to managing diabetes. This can mean feelings of being overwhelmed, different fears, worries, defeat. These feelings are all normal reactions to living with diabetes, but it is important to speak with your doctor if these feelings are starting to mirror symptoms of depression.
If you have read my previous article “Lucky Number 7” it goes on to explain that 7 hours of sleep is the magic number for adults 40 and over. But what about our young adults? While there is no magic number found for that age group yet, we do assume it is more than 7 hours. During this study, 54.3% of the participants aged 18-30 slept less than 7 hours per night.
Shorter sleep time and lack of quality sleep were associated with higher diabetes emotional distress which is also linked to higher HbA1c levels. What is interesting, in a similar study, Insulin pump/CGM users AND non-users displayed similar levels of diabetes distress.
“Our study fills an important gap in our understanding of diabetes distress in young adults, particularly notable are the high prevalence of diabetes distress and regimen-related distress despite use of diabetes devices. While users of insulin pumps and CGMs have overall lower HbA1c levels than those who do not use the devices, the benefit of device use diminishes when high diabetes distress is present. Diabetes distress may be an important barrier in preventing young adults from realizing the benefits of modern diabetes devices.” – Naomi Berrie Diabetes Center at the Columbia University Irving Medical Center in New York
Leave A Comment