Personalizing Sleep Interventions to Prevent Type 2 Diabetes in Community Dwelling Adults With Pre-Diabetes

Diet and exercise interventions have made great strides in preventing and delaying type 2 diabetes (T2D) onset: benefits that surpass pharmacological interventions in some people. Disappointingly, only half the amount of weight loss and wide ranges in T2D risk reduction have been reported when translating these programs into community settings using less intense, more affordable interventions. Low program participation rates, underscored by reports that only 50% of Americans with prediabetes attempt lifestyle modifications, suggest that approaches focused on calorie restriction and physical activity are only effective for select, highly motivated individuals. Expanding success for heretofore resistant groups and optimizing long term maintenance requires novel approaches beyond diet and exercise. One novel approach is improving sleep.

Associations between sleep duration, sleep patterns, and glucose regulation in healthy adults suggest that interventions targeting these dimensions of sleep will improve glucose regulation. Improved insulin sensitivity has been reported in a small community based daily sleep extension study (N= 16), as well as in a 2-day lab based sleep extension study using a personalized "catch up" sleep intervention in healthy adults (N = 19,). Limited by small sample sizes, controlled lab conditions, and the exclusion of persons at greatest risk for T2D, the role of sleep in mitigating T2D risk remains uncertain. Moreover, sleep extension interventions have applied a generic approach to extending sleep despite variability in individual sleep need. The sleep extension intervention in this study will address how to extend sleep based on individual responses to the intervention.

This study will test the effects of a personalized daily sleep extension intervention versus habitual sleep patterns on the percentage of time glucose is 140 mg/dL in sleep restricted community-dwelling adults at high risk for T2D. Wearable sensor technologies (continuous glucose monitoring and accelerometry) will be used. This study will inform person-specific sleep interventions that improve glycemic responses, thus providing treatment for the pre-diabetic state.

Hypothesis: Personalized daily sleep extension will result in a lower % time glucose is 140 compared to habitual sleep after 8 weeks of treatment initiation.