This article discusses a study on mice showing that time-restricted feeding restores the disrupted circadian rhythm of insulin secretion among shift workers.[1]
Insulin secretion not only depends on the presence of food but also on the time of day. It is part of the circadian rhythm that all organisms follow.
Circadian Rhythm
Circadian rhythms are physical, mental, and behavioral changes that follow a 24-hour cycle.
These natural processes respond primarily to light and dark and affect most living things, including animals, plants, and microbes.
All body organs follow this rhythm. Two clocks make the circadian rhythm possible for insulin secretion. A central clock in the brain is in tune with the presence of light, and a peripheral clock in the pancreas responds to food.
The beta cells of the pancreas produce insulin that stores sugar in the liver and muscles and lowers the blood sugar. If there is insufficient insulin or the cells will not absorb insulin, a condition called insulin resistance, high blood sugar, and diabetes can result.
The Danger of Night Shifts
Working nights disrupt the normal rhythmic production of insulin and other hormones like cortisol and epinephrine. That’s because the body is forced to work when it should be resting. The result is increased physical stress.
Blood pressure rises, fat accumulates, and blood sugar can get high. All increase the risk of type 2 diabetes, atherosclerosis formation, and added cardiovascular risk.
Working nights is similar to cigarette smoking in increasing the risk of a heart attack.[2]
So, what can night shift workers do to avoid the higher risk of a heart attack?
Fasting Mice
A study from the Mayo Clinic, Time-restricted feeding prevents deleterious metabolic effects of circadian disruption through epigenetic control of β cell function, was published by Science Advances in December 2021.
In it, three groups of mice were studied.
The Control group (CON) had 12 hours of light and 12 hours of darkness. Food and drink were available ad libitum all the time. In this group, the mice behaved typically, which is they are active and eat during the dark and then sleep when there is light.
Light was present in the Circadian Disruption group (CD) for 24 hours. Food and drink were also available all the time.
The third group, the Circadian Disruption-time Restricted Feeding group (CD-tRF), was also exposed to 24-hour light. This time, their feeding time was restricted to an 8-hour window during the dark when they typically eat. Essentially, they were made to do sixteen hours of intermittent fasting with eight hours of feeding.
Blood sugar levels, insulin secretion, and insulin tolerance were measured during the eight-week study period.
In particular, they measured the messenger RNAs (mRNA) transcribed to become genes and other proteins for insulin production, processing, and secretion from the pancreatic cells.
Results
As expected, the control group displayed “robust diurnal rhythmicity,” as shown by markedly enhanced glucose tolerance and insulin secretion.[1]
In this group, they found 4,294 mRNA transcripts that make the proteins responsible for the normal diurnal variation of insulin secretion.
The mRNAs measured were necessary to produce genes, proteins, and hormones like insulin for healthy glucose tolerance and normal blood pressure.
Among the circadian-disruption group exposed to light all the time, high blood sugar was seen due to disrupted insulin secretion. This was due to the disordered expression of all the mRNAs responsible for sugar control.
In the Circadian Disruption-time Restricted Feeding group, 525 mRNA transcripts were restored. This resulted in normal rhythmic insulin secretion, improved glucose tolerance, and well-regulated blood sugar in the whole group.
Circadian transcriptomic analysis of CD-tRF islets highlighted that reestablishment of normal fasting/feeding cycles was associated with circadian reentrainment of 525 islet transcripts preferentially involved in the regulation of circadian clock function and insulin secretion.[1]
Their experiments found that fasting allows the insulin-producing cells to “rest.” This period is essential to produce the necessary mRNAs and genes to secrete adequate insulin for the following eating period.
Humans with Type 2 Diabetes also Benefit from Fasting
Resting the beta cells also works in humans. The research, Overnight inhibition of insulin, secretion restores pulsatility and proinsulin/insulin ratio in type 2 diabetes from the Keck School of Medicine of the University of Southern California, was published in 2000 by the American Journal of Physiology.
This time, eleven patients with type 2 diabetes were studied. They found the amount of cyclical insulin production in those with type 2 diabetes was decreased, leading to high blood sugar.
However, if the insulin-producing cells rested, it produced more insulin and better blood sugar control.
Resting the beta cells in the USC study was induced by the infusion of another hormone, somatostatin, which prevents insulin production. The insulin-lowering effect of somatostatin is similar to fasting, where no calories are taken, that increase insulin.
In summary, intermittent fasting can help restore normal blood sugar in those who work at night and lessen cardiovascular risk.
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References:
- Matthew R. Brown et al., Time-restricted feeding prevents deleterious metabolic effects of circadian disruption through epigenetic control of β cell function. Sci. Adv.7,eabg6856(2021). DOI:10.1126/sciadv.abg6856
- Vetter CDevore EEWegrzyn LR, et al. Association Between Rotating Night Shift Work and Risk of Coronary Heart Disease Among Women. JAMA. 2016;315(16):1726–1734. doi:10.1001/jama.2016.4454
- Laedtke T, Kjems L, Pørksen N, Schmitz O, Veldhuis J, Kao PC, Butler PC. Overnight inhibition of insulin secretion restores pulsatility and proinsulin/insulin ratio in type 2 diabetes. Am J Physiol Endocrinol Metab. 2000 Sep;279(3):E520-8. doi: 10.1152/ajpendo.2000.279.3.E520. PMID: 10950818.
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Encouraging to me, a chronic night owl. I was not aware of this sleep-cycle study in your article! Good to know! I have already been keeping a fasting state for other reasons while up through the early morning hours and also taking berberine, which has been shown in studies to lower blood glucose, enable weight loss, and maintain heart health.
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