Research

Hormonal

Sleep-disordered breathing (SDB) causes impairments in insulin sensitivity, glucose effectiveness, and pancreatic beta-cell function independent of adiposity, thereby increasing the risk of type 2 diabetes.

If you have symptoms of sleep apnea (snoring, daytime fatigue), get tested. Treating sleep-disordered breathing is crucial for metabolic health and diabetes prevention, regardless of your weight. The metabolic damage from poor sleep is distinct from the damage caused by excess body fat.

GoodSupportsHIGH confidence
The results of this study suggest that, independent of adiposity, SDB is associated with impairments in insulin sensitivity, glucose effectiveness, and pancreatic b-cell function. Collectively, these defects may increase the risk of glucose intolerance and type 2 diabetes mellitus in SDB.
Naresh M. Punjabi et al. · American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine · 2008

Why this rating

Large sample size (n=118), rigorous FSIVGTT testing, and adjustment for body fat via DEXA, though cross-sectional design limits causal inference.

Source

Alterations in Glucose Disposal in Sleep-disordered Breathing

Naresh M. Punjabi et al. · American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine · 2008

DOI 10.1164/rccm.200809-1392oc

cross_sectional · n=118Cited 308×
Read the paper
DOI resolved against Crossref · corpus check 2026-06-10

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