Sleep Impairment vs. High-Fat Diet: Which is Worse for Insulin Resistance?

One night of sleep depravation could have similar effects on insulin sensitivity as consuming a high-fat diet for 6 months, according to a recent study.

For their study, researchers used a canine model to compare the effects of a high-fat diet and sleep deficiency on insulin resistance.
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IV glucose tolerance was measured in the dogs after they had been deprived of sleep for 1 night. Researchers compared these results against those in dogs who had had a normal night sleep. They then fed the dogs a high-fat diet for 6 months and tested for insulin sensitivity a second time.

Overall, 1 night of sleep was associated with a 33% reduced sensitivity to insulin and 6 months of a high-fat diet was associated with a 21% reduction in insulin sensitivity.

Further sleep deprivation following the 6-month diet intervention did not further reduce insulin sensitivity.

“This study suggests that because sleep loss and high fat diet are not additive in their impairment of insulin sensitivity, they may act by similar mechanisms,” they concluded.

“Future studies are necessary to determine the pathways that may account for the interactions between sleep and diet and their relationship to insulin resistance.”

—Michael Potts

Reference:

Broussard J. Sleep deprivation and fat feeding may reduce insulin action by similar mechanistic pathways. Paper presented at: The Obesity Society Annual Meeting at Obesity Week 2015. November 2-6, 2015. Los Angeles, CA.