Latest news with #Trøndelag
Medscape
31-07-2025
- Health
- Medscape
Poor Sleep Quality May Worsen Emotional Burden in T2D
TOPLINE: Patients with type 2 diabetes (T2D) who experienced sleep impairments, including short sleep duration, snoring, and insomnia symptoms, were more likely to face an increased risk for diabetes distress. In particular, daytime coping difficulties due to sleep problems showed a notably prominent association with diabetes distress. METHODOLOGY: Researchers in Norway conducted a cross-sectional study to explore the association between sleep impairment and diabetes distress in 1954 participants with T2D (mean age, 67.3 years; mean duration of diabetes, 12.1 years) recruited from an ongoing longitudinal population-based study. Diabetes distress was self-reported using the five-item Problem Areas in Diabetes Questionnaire; a total score of 8 or above denoted high levels of diabetes distress. Sleep impairments were assessed using the sleeping HUNT (The Trøndelag Health Study) Questionnaire that included questions on snoring, sleep apnoea, insomnia, daytime functioning, and restless legs; the number of hours of sleep at night was assessed using a different question. TAKEAWAY: Participants who reported sleep impairments were more often women; had lower socioeconomic status, higher mean BMI, and elevated systolic blood pressure; were current smokers; and exercised less frequently. Difficulties coping during daytime due to sleep problems showed the strongest association with diabetes distress (regression coefficient [β], 2.6; 95% CI, 1.7-3.6), followed by trouble falling asleep (β, 1.4; 95% CI, 0.8-2.2) and early morning awakening (β, 1.2; 95% CI, 0.7-1.8). Short sleep duration (≤ 7 hours), snoring, nighttime awakenings, and having restless legs were also associated with higher levels of diabetes distress. Associations between sleep impairments and diabetes distress were similar between men and women. IN PRACTICE: "The assessment of sleep quality should be part of routine diabetes care in people with T2D. Efforts need to be made to raise awareness towards the relationship between sleep impairments and diabetes distress, which further may encourage these individuals to prioritize sleep and seek help when needed," the authors wrote. SOURCE: This study was led by Hilde K.R. Riise, Western Norway University of Applied Sciences, Bergen, Norway. It was published online on July 25, 2025, in Diabetic Medicine. LIMITATIONS: The study population was predominantly Caucasian. The cross-sectional design of the study precluded causal inferences between sleep impairment and diabetes distress. Moreover, sleep impairment data were self-reported without clinical verification and were collected at a single timepoint. DISCLOSURES: This study was supported by the Swedish Research Council and Helse Vest. Some authors reported receiving honoraria for lectures and lecture fees from certain pharmaceutical companies. This article was created using several editorial tools, including AI, as part of the process. Human editors reviewed this content before publication.
The Independent
13-06-2025
- Health
- The Independent
Your walking distance may be more important than speed to fix chronic back pain
While walking is beneficial for reducing the risk of lingering chronic low back pain, experts say that it is how you walk that really matters. Walking more is a bigger factor than how fast you walk, Norwegian researchers said on Friday. 'Our findings suggest that daily walking volume is more important than mean walking intensity in reducing the risk of chronic lower back pain,' they wrote in a study published in the journal JAMA Network Open. The authors also found that walking for more than 100 minutes a day -- or an hour and forty minutes -- was associated with a 23 percent lower risk of chronic low back pain compared with walking fewer than 78 minutes a day. Walking 125 minutes or more daily also lowered the risk by 24 percent. The study included data from more than 11,000 patients aged 20 years and older, who were a part of the Trøndelag Health Study. Their health was first assessed during the years from 2017 to 2019. The authors later followed up from 2021 to 2023. Participants did not have chronic low back pain at the start of the study. To measure their walking, they wore accelerometers. Following just over four years, 1,659 participants reported experiencing chronic low back pain. They noted that participants with a higher walking volume tended to exercise more often and that the reduction in risk of chronic low back pain leveled off beyond walking for 100 minutes a day. Still, they urged that these findings could inform policy related to the costly condition going forward. The findings come after previous research that also identified being active as a way to alleviate chronic low back pain. Back pain affects more than a quarter of Americans. Another study last year found that people with chronic low back pain who walked 30 minutes a day for five days a week went twice as long without a recurrence as those who did not walk, according to UCLA Health. Approximately 70 percent of individuals experience a recurrence of low back pain within 12 months following recovery from an episode, Australian researchers found. Walking can help to strengthen the muscles that support the spine, and increase circulation and joint mobilization, according to Healthline. It is the sixth-most costly condition in the U.S. and can be incredibly debilitating, making even standing up or sitting at work a struggle. 'If confirmed by future research, these results could inform public health strategies aimed at preventing chronic low back pain, as well as complementing current guidelines that solely report on physical activity as a secondary prevention tool,' they said.
