How you eat may be connected to how you sleep

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The average adult should get a minimum of seven hours of sleep daily, according to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommendations. However, an estimated 50 to 70 million Americans are diagnosed with a sleep disorder (such as sleep apnea and insomnia) that prevents optimal sleep outcomes, and what we eat may play a role.

A study by registered dietitian and clinical nutrition researcher Raedeh Basiri has shown that blood sugar levels—whether in individuals with or without diabetes—are linked to sleep quality.

The study is published in the journal Frontiers in Nutrition.

The research found that blood glucose patterns, diabetes management, and the types of foods people eat were all associated with how well they sleep:

• Individuals with diabetes were more likely to have trouble sleeping, be diagnosed with sleep disorders, and have abnormal sleep duration compared to individuals without diabetes. Those with prediabetes showed similar patterns, but not as strongly.
• Strict dietary management and diabetes control were associated with more sleep difficulties, suggesting that blood-sugar status and the types of foods you eat may play important roles in how well you sleep
• Low-protein diets, especially when combined with high-fat intake, were most consistently linked to poor sleep across the board. On the other hand, low-carb, high-fat diets were associated with a lower likelihood of short sleep duration in both people with diabetes and those with normal blood sugar.

Basiri’s research highlights the importance of considering both dietary patterns and blood sugar status when developing strategies to improve sleep.

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