The deadly link between sleep loss and diabetes in men

It takes just one sleepless night to send your body into a tailspin. I’ve told you this a million times — but sometimes, a picture really is worth a thousand words. So have a look at the results of this latest study…

This research debuted at the Endocrine Society’s 100th annual meeting this past year. It featured 34 healthy men, with an average age of 33, who participated in a series of controlled, five-night sleep studies.

On the first night, subjects clocked 10 hours of sleep — followed by only four hours of sleep for the remaining four nights.

The men served as their own controls throughout, as the researchers administered hormone-mediating substances for different experiments. The goal was to see how testosterone and cortisol levels influence the role that sleep loss plays in blood sugar metabolism.

Subjects took glucose tolerance tests on the first and last nights of the study. And unsurprisingly, sleep restriction was linked with greater insulin resistance in all circumstances.

But here’s where it gets interesting: When researchers normalized subjects testosterone and cortisol levels with medication, the damaging effects of sleep loss on blood sugar metabolism were dramatically reduced.

In other words, sleep loss sets off a deadly hormonal domino effect. And stopping that testosterone-crushing, cortisol-rocketing cascade may be one way to mitigate its worst effects.

At least, that’s the conclusion these researchers came to. I’m not trying to step on anybody’s toes, but wouldn’t the best solution be simply to get adequate sleep in the first place?

That said, this research does shine a light on some vital connections. And if sleep loss has an effect this dramatic in healthy young men, just imagine what it could do to older men already struggling with low T.

I’ve devoted a fair amount of discussion to menopause lately — but this study serves as a good reminder that a man’s “change of life” carries a lot of the same health challenges older women navigate. Low testosterone poses very real risks — and when you compound it with poor sleep, it’s a true recipe for disaster.

Clearly, both issues demand your attention. (And that goes for both men and women, too.)

I’ve always been a huge proponent of testosterone replacement, despite all the controversies du jour. But you can get the complete scoop by going back and reading the November 2012 or June 2015 issues of my monthly newsletter Logical Health Alternatives. (Subscribers have access to every article I’ve ever written — so if you haven’t already, sign up now to get the scoop.)

As for sleep? Turns out, I have an easy, drug-free plan to cure your insomnia and get you sleeping perfectly for life. Click here if you would like to learn more about my Perfect Sleep Protocol, or to sign up today.

Source:

sciencedaily.com/releases/2018/03/180318144819.htm