Diabetes : sleep in childhood is beneficial

TatyanaGl/Epictura

Published the 16.08.2017 at 11: 38 am

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sommeildiabète type 2enfant

Cancer of the breast, colon, cardiovascular disease, STROKE… The lack of sleep is not trivial, and in addition to assigning vigilance, memory, or immunity, in daily life, it has effects on the long-term health. And this starts as early as childhood.

British researchers from the university of London have shown that in children, a decrease of one hour of sleep compared to the official recommendations was enough to increase the risk of developing type 2 diabetes.

Higher risk factors

“The potential benefits associated with an increase of sleep time during childhood may have implications for the health of adults,” says professor Christopher Owen, an epidemiologist at the university of London, and lead author of the study.

To arrive at this conclusion, they analyzed the body size, blood samples and questionnaires from more than 4 500 children aged 9 to 10 years. They then noticed that the children who sleep longer, weigh less heavy, have less fat, and that their rate of glucose in the blood is lower. They also develop less insulin resistance. Four characteristics that are risk factors of type 2 diabetes.