Anxiety and insomnia link to diabetes in men

ANXIETY and a lack of sleep doubles a man’s risk of developing diabetes, according to research out yesterday.

A range of symptoms linked with psychological distress contributes to a higher risk of Type 2 diabetes, the study found.

Researchers followed 2,127 middle-aged men in Sweden for eight to 10 years. They all had normal blood glucose levels at the beginning of the study and were asked questions about five areas of distress, including anxiety, apathy, depression, fatigue and insomnia.

By the end of the study, 245 men had pre-diabetes, which indicated they were at risk of developing full blown Type 2 diabetes.

Another 103 men had developed Type 2 diabetes in full.

Researchers found that those men who reported the highest levels of distress at the start and end of the study were 2.2 times more likely to develop Type 2 than those with the lowest levels.

The link was independent of other factors including age, body mass index, family history of diabetes, smoking, physical activity and socioeconomic background.

A total of 3,100 women were also followed but their risk of developing the disease was not linked with high levels of psychological distress.

The study, published in the journal Diabetic Medicine, was carried out by experts from the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm.

Professor Anders Ekbom, from the institute’s unit of clinical epidemiology, led the study.

He said: “Genetic and environmental factors are involved in the development of Type 2 diabetes.”