People exposed to light at night are more likely to develop type 2 diabetes The more exposure to brighter light, the higher the risk for diabetes Light affects sleep patterns, which in turn affects blood sugar levels THURSDAY, June 27, 2024 (HealthDay News) -- Want to reduce your risk of type 2 diabetes? Avoid bright light at night, a recent study suggests. More exposure to light at night, between 12:30 a.m.
and 6 a.m., is linked to a higher risk of developing , researchers found.
That’s likely because light affects sleep patterns, which are important for maintaining healthy insulin sensitivity and stable blood sugar levels, researchers said. “Light exposure at night can disrupt our circadian rhythms, leading to changes in insulin secretion and glucose metabolism,” senior researcher , an associate professor of medicine and public health at Flinders University in Australia, said in a news release. “Changes in insulin secretion and glucose metabolism caused by disrupted circadian rhythms affect the body's ability to regulate blood sugar levels, which can ultimately lead to the development of type 2 diabetes,” he continued.
For , researchers analyzed data from about 85,000 healthy people without diabetes. The participants wore devices on their wrist for one week that tracked their light exposure levels day and night, collecting about 13 million hours of light sensor data. The team then tracked the participants for nine years to see whether they went on to develop type .