Personalized intervention to improve stress and sleep patterns for glycemic control and weight management in obese Emirati patients with type 2 diabetes: a randomized controlled clinical trial

Abstract

Background:

There is growing evidence that stress and sleep deprivation are involved in development of type 2 diabetes (T2DM). The latter is one of the most challenging health problems in the UAE. Therefore, the present study aimed to investigate the effects of personalized intervention on glycemic and weight control in Emirati patients with T2DM. The intervention involved assessment and modification of stress levels and sleep patterns.

Methods:

This was a randomized controlled study conducted on 51 Emirati patients with T2DM (age 18–60 years, body-mass index (BMI) ≥25 kg/m²): those in the intervention group who completed the trial numbered 18 and those in the control group who completed the trial numbered 17. Heart-rate variability was used for real-life and long-term assessments of stress, sleep, and recovery. Body weight, BMI, HbA_1c and lipid profile were included in the investigation. The National Clinical Trial identifier number is NCT03644134.

Results:

Percentage change in body weight was significantly greater (P<0.05) in the intervention group (–3.2±2.9) than the control group (–0.02). Percentage change in the BMI of the intervention group was –4.50±5.9, while the control group exhibited less change in BMI (–0.0003±3.3, P<0.05). In addition, a significant reduction in HbA_1c was observed in the intervention group (–5.3±15.7) and an increase of 9.9±13.1 was observed in the control group (P<0.01).

Conclusion:

The findings of the present study show that personalized approaches that reduce stress levels, increase recovery levels, and promote healthy sleep habits play an important role in weight management and glycemic control in T2DM.

Keywords:

• diabetes mellitus
• obesity
• stress
• recovery levels
• sleep pattern
• heart rate variability

Acknowledgments

The authors would like to acknowledge Rashid Centre for Diabetes and Research for supporting the study and providing all the required resources. Also, the authors would like to thank Celo-Lab for providing us with the monitoring devices. Furthermore, the authors would like to acknowledge all participants of the study.

Data availability

Research data used in the preparation of the manuscript are available for sharing upon reasonable request. This includes the assessment tools and individual deidentified participant data. The data can be obtained from Dr Bashair M Mussa or https://clinicaltrials.gov.

Disclosure

The authors report no conflicts of interest in this work.