Comorbidity of Diabetes and Chronic Sleep Disturbances and Consumption of a Mediterranean-Style Diet

Abstract

Objective: This study assessed whether comorbidity of diabetes and chronic sleep disturbances was associated with less healthy dietary consumption, defined as a Mediterranean-style Diet, compared to adults with only one or neither of the conditions. Research Design and Methods: Participants were selected from the Health and Retirement Study (HRS). Diabetes status and chronic sleep disturbances were assessed during the 2010 interview. Participants were categorized into one of four groups: no sleep disturbances or diabetes, sleep disturbances, diabetes, or sleep disturbances and diabetes. 7,423 participants completed a food frequency questionnaire by mail from which the alternative Mediterranean Diet (aMedDiet) score was assessed. Logistic regression was used to determine the odds of consuming an aMedDiet based on comorbidity of diabetes and chronic sleep disturbances. Models were stratified by gender. Results: After adjusting for age and caloric intake, men with diabetes were more likely to consume an aMedDiet in the highest quartile (OR 1.45; 95% CI 1.11-1.91) than men with neither chronic sleep disturbances nor diabetes. The magnitude of the association increased after adjustment for additional demographic and health variables (OR 1.70, 95% CI 1.25-2.29). Women with sleep disturbances were less likely to consume an aMedDiet than those without sleep disturbances. The reduction in the odds of consuming an aMedDiet was greatest among women with comorbidity of the two conditions (OR 0.53, 95% CI 0.37-0.77) yet was also significant among those with chronic sleep disturbances alone (OR sleep disturbances 0.71, 95% CI 0.56-0.90). The results in women were attenuated after multivariate adjustment. Conclusion: Chronic sleep disturbances reduce healthy dietary intake in adults with diabetes. Disclosure H. Guyer: None.