Sleep disturbances are frequent during pregnancy and can adversely affect glucose metabolism. Findings presented at EASD 2025 explored how sleep duration and quality influence continuous glucose monitoring (CGM)–derived metrics in women with gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) or impaired glucose tolerance (IGT). The study included 48 participants from New Jersey, USA, and Dhulikhel, Nepal, between 24 and 35 weeks of gestation. Sleep duration and quality were assessed using items from the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index, and glucose profiles were tracked for up to 14 days using CGM.

Longer sleep duration was generally associated with more favorable glucose profiles across 24-hour, daytime, nocturnal, and fasting measures. Among U.S. participants, sleeping 6.1–7.9 hours per night was significantly linked to lower glucose levels across all metrics (p ≤ 0.006), while those sleeping 8–8.9 hours also showed reduced fasting glucose. No consistent associations were observed for sleep quality or in the Nepal subgroup.

These findings suggest that longer, adequate sleep may contribute to improved glycemic control during pregnancy, highlighting the potential importance of sleep assessment in gestational diabetes care and counseling.