Night owls make up approximately 15% of the population and are most productive late into the evenings. Many are creative and more open to taking risks. While not always true, they may be more likely to: Be sleep-deprived.
If you prefer to go to bed and get up later – a sleep chronotype known as being a night owl – you may be at higher risk for type 2 diabetes and heart disease, a new study found. Night owls were more sedentary, had lower aerobic fitness levels and burned less fat at rest and while active than early birds in the study.
Many adults with ADHD are self-described (and quite happy) “night owls.” As stimuli and distractions dim, creativity and productivity shine while the rest of the world sleeps.
They also have higher IQs according to The Independent. Unfortunately, night owls have slightly lower academic scores than early risers (by about 8%). The reason for all these differences is likely due to the difference in brain chemistry between late night creative types and early morning larks.
Usually, people who are night owls stay awake past midnight, and extreme night owls may stay awake until just before or even after dawn. Some night owls have a preference or habit for staying up late, or stay up to work the night shift.
In 2018, a large study in the UK found that evening people had a 10 percent higher risk of dying than morning people over a 6.5-year period.
In fact, some studies suggest that night owls tend to possess three personality traits known as the “dark triad.” These traits are psychopathy (psychologically manipulative tendencies), Machiavellianism (a willingness to harm others in pursuit of a personal goal), and narcissism (a self-obsessed personality).
Other well-known night owls include Winston Churchill, Fran Lebowitz, Bob Dylan, Carl Jung, J.R.R. Tolkien, John Travolta, Prince, Christina Aguilera, and, believe it or not, Barack Obama. Some research even suggests that those who stay up late and sleep in regularly are smarter than those who don't.
Morning people really are happier, study finds. A new study finds that night owls have an increased risk for mental illness and are less happy than morning larks. Morning larks wake in the early hours with smiles on their faces and a can-do attitude that befuddles most night owls.
But having night-owl tendencies may come with serious health effects. Recent studies have discovered that, regardless of their lifestyle, people who stay up late had both higher levels of body fat and an increased risk of developing other health problems, such as diabetes and low muscle mass, than did early birds.
Humans are diurnal -- we are active in the day and sleep at night. But diurnalism is by far the exception rather the rule in mammals. About 250-230 million years ago, the mammalian ancestors, called the therapsids, became exclusively nocturnal, and stayed so until the demise of the dinosaurs 66 million years ago.
For those with delayed sleep phased disorder, a genetic mutation elongates the body's biological clock. This disorder causes people to stay up late at night and sleep later into the morning. The mutation impacts the production of hormones like melatonin, which is important for regulating the sleep cycle.
“Evening-oriented individuals show greater difficulties in self-regulation, together with a reduced ability to process and regulate negative emotions,” according to the study.
True night owls struggle with fatigue in the morning even after a full night's sleep, and for some this feeling of tiredness can continue well into the day. If you consistently feel groggy and fatigued during the daytime no matter how well you've slept, you're probably a night owl.
“Although morning types may achieve more academically, night owls tend to perform better on measures of memory, processing speed, and cognitive ability, even when they have to perform those tasks in the morning,” notes the BBC. “Night-time people are also more open to new experiences and seek them out more.”
Is it better to be an early bird or a night owl? As long as you're getting the 7–9 hours of high quality sleep recommended by the National Sleep Foundation each night, it doesn't really matter what time you choose to wake up and go to sleep.
Night owls thrive after dark and may struggle to wake at sunrise, requiring multiple alarms. This chronotype is typically more creative in the afternoon and evening. According to researchers, while a third of the population doesn't have a strongly defined chronotype, 30 percent are ascribed night owls.
Psychology Today reported that intelligent people are likely to be nocturnal beings, with those with a higher IQ going bed later on both weeknights and weekends.
But, being a night owl may also just be in your genes. "A recent study has actually shown that a genetic change in a gene called CRY1 is common among people who have a condition called delayed sleep phase disorder, or DSPD," explains Dr. Ayish.