Erratic sleep increases a person's risk of suffering Type 2 diabetes.
Erratic sleep can increase the risk of Type 2 diabetes
Researchers in the US have found that those with the most irregular sleep patterns had the highest chance of being diagnosed with the health condition in later life.
Boffins are now planning to study why the internal body clock is so closely linked to diabetes in the hope that it could lead to new treatments.
The study analysed more than 84,000 people in the UK with an average age of 62 who wore smartwatches that monitored their movement for seven nights.
It was revealed that those whose sleep length varied by over an hour each day had a 34 per cent increased risk of developing Type 2 diabetes.
Professor Sina Kianersi, lead researcher at Brigham and Women's Hospital, said: "Our findings have the potential to improve diabetes prevention on multiple levels.
"Clinically, they might inform better patient care and treatment plans. Public health guidelines could promote regular sleep patterns.
"However, more research is needed to fully understand the mechanism and confirm the results in other populations."