Night owls at health risk
Research infers those who wake up late may develop diabetes.
Staying awake till late night is likely to result in eating at inappropriate times, which may eventually lead to metabolic change. PHOTO: FILE
SEOUL:
You may run at a greater risk of developing diabetes than early-risers, despite getting equal amount of sleep, a new study warns. Published in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism, the research examined the difference between night and morning chronotypes or a person’s natural sleep-wake cycle.
Staying awake till late night is likely to cause sleep loss, poor sleep quality and eating at inappropriate times, which may eventually lead to metabolic change, the researchers noted. “Regardless of lifestyle, people, who stayed up late, faced a higher risk of developing health problems, such as diabetes or sarcopenia and reduced muscle mass than those who were early-risers,” said Nan Hee Kim, one of the study’s authors from the Korea University College of Medicine in Ansan, South Korea.
“This could be caused by night owls’ tendency to have poorer sleep quality and to engage in unhealthy behaviours, such as smoking, late-night eating and a sedentary lifestyle,” Kim added. The study explored sleeping habits and metabolism in 1,620 participants, aged between 47 and 59, in the population-based cohort Korean Genome Epidemiology Study.
Although the evening chronotypes tended to be younger, they had higher levels of body fat and triglycerides, or fats in the blood, than morning chronotypes. Men, who were evening chronotypes, were more likely to have diabetes or sarcopenia than early-risers. Among women, night owls tended to have more belly fat and a great risk of metabolic syndrome, a cluster of risk factors that raise the likelihood of heart disease, stroke and diabetes.
Published in The Express Tribune, April 5th, 2015.
You may run at a greater risk of developing diabetes than early-risers, despite getting equal amount of sleep, a new study warns. Published in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism, the research examined the difference between night and morning chronotypes or a person’s natural sleep-wake cycle.
Staying awake till late night is likely to cause sleep loss, poor sleep quality and eating at inappropriate times, which may eventually lead to metabolic change, the researchers noted. “Regardless of lifestyle, people, who stayed up late, faced a higher risk of developing health problems, such as diabetes or sarcopenia and reduced muscle mass than those who were early-risers,” said Nan Hee Kim, one of the study’s authors from the Korea University College of Medicine in Ansan, South Korea.
“This could be caused by night owls’ tendency to have poorer sleep quality and to engage in unhealthy behaviours, such as smoking, late-night eating and a sedentary lifestyle,” Kim added. The study explored sleeping habits and metabolism in 1,620 participants, aged between 47 and 59, in the population-based cohort Korean Genome Epidemiology Study.
Although the evening chronotypes tended to be younger, they had higher levels of body fat and triglycerides, or fats in the blood, than morning chronotypes. Men, who were evening chronotypes, were more likely to have diabetes or sarcopenia than early-risers. Among women, night owls tended to have more belly fat and a great risk of metabolic syndrome, a cluster of risk factors that raise the likelihood of heart disease, stroke and diabetes.
Published in The Express Tribune, April 5th, 2015.