Are you an Early Bird or a Night Owl?
I think we all probably know some people that are either early risers or night owls.
Some people can happily get up at 7am and be totally refreshed, then go on with their day and start feeling tired around 9-10pm.
Others hate even the thought of getting up anytime before 10, and much prefer staying up until 2 or 3am.
It's all a personal preference and neither lifestyle is particularly good or bad - but why are people so different in their preferred waking times?
"Early to bed and early to rise makes a man healthy, wealthy, and wise."-Benjamin Franklin
Scientists have proven that this famous quote by Benjamin Franklin does not reflect the truth.
While there are some benefits to being an early riser, it's not a better lifestyle in general.
Our personal preference of waking and resting times is called a chronotype.
Everybody has an "inner clock" and certain times of the day where he/she can perform certain tasks at an optimal level.
Scientists have found that there are certain gene variations that influence our circadian clock ("inner clock" that controls our sleep and wake cycles).
And almost the whole population is affected by these variations - so this is really partly influenced by our genes!
In general, most kids start out being a morning person because of our school system.
Since they've never known anything else in their life, their parents get up early too and school starts early in the morning, they automatically adapt to this routine.
During the teenage years, many then convert to being a night owl - and as an adult, they gradually return more towards the early riser because of work life.
Scientists have found that apart from genetic differences, there are also physical differences in the brains of early risers and night owls:
They tested three different groups of subjects: one were early risers, one were night owls, and the last group consisted of people that were mediocre sleepers, neither particularly early nor particularly late.
And the result showed that the integrity of white matter was decreased in the brains of night owls!
White matter is a tissue inside our brain, which controls how well the nerve cells communicate with each other.
When the integrity of that tissue is decreased, there's often also a decreased ability for cognitive function, as well as a higher risk for depression.
Studies have shown that night owls are more prone to alcohol or nicotine use (and abuse), as well as a greater risk for depression that's linked to insomnia.
In fact, night owls often suffer from "Social Jet Lag":
Because life around them is mostly starting early in the morning, they are often forced to adapt to it - against their natural preference and circadian rhythm.
This leads to similar symptoms like travel jet lag: they're often sleepy, not 100% physically fit and might have problems focusing when woken up early in the morning.
But there are also positive results!
Night Owls have shown to have more stamina throughout the day than an early riser, and night owls are also often more likely to achieve financial success as well as having great analytical abilities.
Early risers on the other hand tend to be more cooperative, proactive and persistent.
They also tend to procrastinate less than night owls - although they're not generally more productive.
Let me know in the comments below: Are YOU an early riser or a night owl?
Or maybe something in between?
Images: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, Sources: 1, 2, 3, 4
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