Neuropathy, Diabetes, and sleep: Strange cause & effect

There is a strong connection between the development and worsening of neuropathy and the amount of sleep you get. This is according to new research presented at the Annual Meeting of the European Association for the Study of Diabetes.

Strangely, it’s not just about getting enough quality sleep.

In diabetic patients, neuropathy occurs when high blood sugar damages the small blood vessels that supply vital nutrients and oxygen to the nerves, particularly in the hands and feet.

Beyond poor blood sugar control, the authors of this study questioned whether sleep duration might also contribute to this risk by damaging the small blood vessels that supply the nerves—a condition known as microvascular disease.

In the study, conducted by researchers from the Steno Diabetes Center Odense in Denmark, data was collected from 396 individuals who had recently been diagnosed with type 2 diabetes.

Participants, with an average age of 62 years, were monitored using accelerometers to measure their sleep duration over a period of 10 days. Sleep was classified into three categories:

- short sleep (less than seven hours per night)
- optimal sleep (seven to nine hours per night)
- long sleep (more than nine hours per night)

The study revealed some significant findings that link sleep duration to the risk of microvascular disease, and by extension, to neuropathy.

1. About 12% of participants slept less than seven hours a night. They had a 2.6 times greater risk of microvascular damage compared to those with optimal sleep duration. 38% showed signs of small blood vessel damage, a precursor to neuropathy.

2. Approximately 28% of participants slept more than nine hours each night. This group also faced an increased risk, with a 2.3 times greater chance of microvascular disease compared to those with optimal sleep. In this group, 31% showed signs of blood vessel damage.

3. The study also found that age played a crucial role, particularly in the short sleep group. For participants aged 62 and older, short sleep was associated with a 5.7 times higher risk of microvascular disease compared to optimal sleep.

Interestingly, it’s both too little and too much sleep that can worsen your neuropathy.

But sleeping is not going to reverse your neuropathy. For that, you need to follow an example of thousands of readers who did just that using the simple all-natural steps explained here…

And if you suffer type 2 diabetes, here is how you reverse it in 3 steps using simple diet and lifestyle changes…