Whether brought on by a late-night coffee or an inability to turn the brain off after a stressful day at the office, a sleepless night can cause more problems than just getting caught yawning at the morning staff meeting.
One might think that sleep is just for resting the mind, to allow it to process and rearrange all of those memories and impressions encountered during the day. But the evidence is growing that a lack of sleep can interfere with the body’s hormonal balances. leading to increased glucose levels in the bloodstream.
Hitting the sack too late or doing too much tossing and turning once the lights go out wears down the body’s ability to regulate blood sugar. Not getting enough shut-eye puts additional strain on the body because it’s then required to generate more insulin from the pancreas to keep blood sugar from going too high.
It’s a vicious cycle because not only is the sleep deprivation interfering with the body’s normal hormonal operations and insulin production, it also results in having a bigger appetite.
When you’re suffering through sleep deprivation, there’s an increase in the hormone that stimulates appetite, called ghrelin. In addition, the hormone that tells your brain that you’re full and satisfied, leptin, is decreased. So not only is your lack of sleep causing all sorts of problems with your insulin levels, it’s also making you more susceptible to cravings and binges.
When you think of all the problems sleep deprivation causes and the enormous strain it puts your body through, the amount of sleep you get should be a top priority in your plan to manage your blood sugar. In fact, sleep should be considered as important in your battle to control your diabetes as diet and exercise.
But getting a good night’s sleep is easier said than done. If you already have diabetes, or even prediabetes, you know one of the symptoms of the disease is frequent urination. This is oftentimes going to interrupt your sleep by forcing you out of bed in the middle of the night to visit the bathroom. And because having extra glucose in your bloodstream will extract more water from your body’s tissues, you will more often feel dehydrated, which will also force you out of bed to get a glass of water.
And after you have a glass or two of water in the middle of the night to satisfy your thirst? Yes, that’s right. The endless cycle of filling the bladder and emptying it continues as all that water you just drank at 2 in the morning will prompt even more nocturnal visits to the bathroom.
By the time your alarm clock eventually rings in the morning to start your day, you’re already feeling tired and worn out. And now you have to rely on a tired and depleted willpower reserve to say no to all the junk food tempations that you may come across throughout the day. It’s a tough position to be in.
But there are simple things you can do that might help in getting you to bed earlier and making you sleep deeper with less interruptions.
The first thing you can do is to turn off all your electronic devices, such as your laptop, the TV, tablets, smartphones, basically anything that is going to keep you distracted and your attention occupied on an electronic screen. Studies show that the blue light emitted from LED screens can disrupt the production of melatonin, the hormone that makes us sleepy and ready for bed.
Although there are now filters out there that promise to eliminate the blue light emitted from these screens, even with one of these screens attached to your device, you will still be staring into a bright light, which can signal to your brain to stay alert and awake.
So put down the laptop or tablet and reach for a book or simply take a hot bath, anything that is relaxing and free of any electronic interference. Disconnect from the world of 24 hour news and gossip and feel what it’s like not to have your attention controlled by someone else, flitting from one Tweet or post to the next. You will feel absolutely liberated when you disconnect from these devices.
But you don’t have to quit cold turkey. Gradually cut back on the time you spend staring into your electronic devices with the ultimate goal of carving out an electronic-free zone a few hours before bedtime.
Start by setting a nightly curfew of turning off all electronic devices an hour before bedtime. After this becomes a habit that you don’t even have to think about, incrementally build up the electronic-free zone to a couple of hours before bedtime. It will take some discipline at first to pull the plug on these devices earlier than you may want to, but by doing so you will be giving your brain a chance to decompress and prime it for a deep and satisfying night’s sleep.
References:
https://www.healthline.com/health/diabetes/diabetes-and-sleep#sleep-disorders
https://www.webmd.com/sleep-disorders/features/diabetes-lack-of-sleep#1
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2084401/
http://www.diabetesforecast.org/2011/may/the-role-of-sleep-in-type-2-diabetes.html
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