The Diabetes Sleep Cure?

A better night's sleep may improve diabetes symptoms, say doctors at Rush University Medical Centre. A link between sleep apnoea and diabetes has long been suspected. Now, in a small study of 25 obese people with diabetes, researchers report that treating sleep apnoea can lower blood sugar levels, which may cut the risk of complications such as heart disease or eye and nerve damage. When people wore a CPAP mask (which keeps the nasal passages open, preventing airway collapse) for at least four hours a night, they lowered their glucose as much as other therapies, such as exercise, do.

More research is needed to confirm these findings and determine whether treating sleep apnoea can slow or prevent the onset of diabetes.