University of Chicago scientists recruited 19 healthy men between the ages of 18 and 30. The volunteers were monitored through two scenarios in randomized order. In one, they got a full night’s rest, 8.5 hours in bed (averaging 7.8 hours asleep) during four consecutive nights. In the other, they spent just 4.5 hours in bed (averaging 4.3 hours asleep) for four consecutive nights.

 

They found that sleep restriction resulted in a 15 to 30 percent increase in late night and early morning fatty acid levels. The nocturnal elevation of fatty acids (from about 4 a.m. to 6 a.m.) correlated with an increase in insulin resistance — a hallmark of pre-diabetes — that persisted for a nearly five hours.

 

“Multiple studies have reported connections between restricted sleep, weight gain, and Type 2 diabetes,” said Esra Tasali, M.D., assistant professor of medicine at the University of Chicago and senior author of the study. “Experimental laboratory studies, like ours, help us unravel the mechanisms that may be responsible,” he added.