Sleep—everyone loves it, yet many of us don’t get enough. If you have diabetes, you might already know that what you eat and how active you are affect your blood sugar—but did you know that how well you sleep can play just as big a role? Poor sleep doesn’t just leave you groggy in the morning; it can actually make it harder to control your blood sugar, sometimes in surprising ways.
Let’s explore why this happens and what you can do about it!
The Connection Between Sleep and Sugar
When you sleep poorly, your body experiences stress. This isn’t the same as the stressful day at work—this is physiological stress. During sleep deprivation, your body releases stress hormones like cortisol and adrenaline. These hormones can signal your liver to release extra glucose into the bloodstream, even if you haven’t eaten anything. For someone with diabetes, especially type 2 diabetes, this can mean higher fasting blood sugar levels in the morning. In other words, your body’s natural “wake-up” response can go into overdrive if you haven’t slept well.
The good news is that there are proven ways to reduce nighttime sugar spikes and improve sleep quality at the same time. Here are a few of them:
1. Stabilize Blood Sugar Before Bed
Going to sleep with unstable blood sugar sets the stage for a rough night. For this reason, its important to have your dinner at least 2h before bedtime. This gives enough time for digestion and prevent discomfort during sleep. Dinner must include primarily healthy proteins and fats, the amount of carbs should be minimal and if you include them, make sure its carbs of slow absorption to prevent sugar spikes (don’t forget your insulin).
2. Keep Your Sleep Schedule Consistent
Your body runs on an internal clock called circadian rhythm, and blood sugar regulation follows it closely. Make sure to go to bed and wake up at the same time every day (yes, even weekends). Consistent sleep timing has been shown to improve insulin sensitivity and fasting glucose levels. In this way, you body knows its bedtime and it gets ready for it.
3. Reduce Evening Cortisol (This One Matters A LOT)
If cortisol is high expect blood glucose to be high. I advice you to try the following activities:
- Relaxing activities: stretching, deep breathing or light reading are great options
- Avoid intense workouts close to bedtime
- Try this breathing exercise instead: slow breathing (inhale 4 seconds, exhale 6 seconds) for 5 minutes before bed—studies show this lowers cortisol and improves sleep quality
- Clear you mind: this is the moment to relax your mind and sleep, everything else is secondary
4. Limit Late-Evening Stimulants
A cup of coffee at 8 p.m. may seem innocent, but it can silently sabotage your sleep. It increases stress hormones and raises blood sugar. Avoid caffeine at least 6–8 hours before bedtime and watch out for “hidden” sources like tea, chocolate, energy drinks and pre-workout supplements.
5. Optimize Your Sleep Environment
Better sleep quality leads to better glucose control—this connection is well supported by research. The sleep hormone called melatonin also supports glucose regulation and darkness helps it do its job. Make sure to:
- Keep the bedroom cool, dark, and quiet
- Use blackout curtains or a sleep mask
- Don’t use your phone in bed (late night scrolling)
6. Track Patterns and Look for Solutions
Tracking patterns might sound tedious at first, but this step is one of the most powerful tools for improving both sleep quality and blood sugar control. Blood sugar doesn’t rise randomly. When you look closely, you’ll often find that poor sleep, late meals, stress, or nighttime awakenings follow a predictable pattern. Tracking helps you spot these connections instead of guessing.
All you need is a small notebook, phone notes, or glucose app works just fine. You can start tracking information like:
- Bedtime blood sugar
- Morning fasting blood sugar
- Sleep duration and quality (slept through the night vs. restless)
- Evening food or snacks
- Stress level before bed (calm, busy, overwhelmed)
- Medications or insulin timing, if applicable
Even tracking 3–4 nights per week can reveal meaningful patterns. Tackling these patterns will lead to confidence and better decisions (and better sleep)
So tonight, put your phone away, dim the lights, and give your body the rest it deserves—your blood sugar will thank you tomorrow!
Thank you for reading this article. I hope you enjoyed reading it as I did writing it,
See you the next time!!