Exam stress and glycemia: a study on medical students

University exams and sessions do not bring with them symptoms that can only be traced back to anxiety dictated by the fear of an important obstacle to overcome. Cold sweats, butterflies in the stomach and a cloudy mind are all familiar situations for students in the moments before an exam or, sometimes, even in the days before completing their studies. Behind these sensations, however, something more could be hidden. An observational study, conducted on undergraduate students in Medicine and presented at the annual congress of the European Association for the Study of Diabetes (EASD), linked exam stress to a significant increase in blood sugar levels in people without diabetes, both during exams and in the days preceding them, with potential implications for the metabolic health of boys and girls.

The analysis

It is not so uncommon for states of tension to cause an increase in heart rate and blood pressure: it is something that can happen. Otherwise, the effect of stress on blood glucose levels is not so frequent. To delve deeper into the phenomenon, researchers analyzed glycemic variations on a sample of 22 healthy second-year medical students in Prague (13 girls and 9 boys). The evaluation was carried out with continuous glucose monitoring systems, using a sensor applied to the arm of the interested parties which records the values ​​every 15 minutes. Measurements began seven days before a biochemistry exam and ended three days after the test. Glucose levels peaked on the day of the test, exceeding the average value of 110 mg per deciliter over the course of the test. Fasting blood sugar values ​​would be between 70 and 99 mg per deciliter.

In a note, Jan Broz, one of the study's authors, said that "although average daily blood sugar levels did not significantly exceed the upper limit for healthy individuals and are not dangerous in the short term, they still indicate that exam stress indirectly increases blood sugar." “However, as medical students are exposed to exam stress for prolonged and repeated periods, often for months, this could have a negative impact on their metabolic health,” concluded the expert.