8/4/2023 0 Comments Have a good night owlHowever, it seems that the adverse health effects of being a night owl may predominantly revolve around dietary habits that are, for the most part, modifiable.įor instance, by eating more healthfully, not skipping breakfast, and drinking less alcohol, a person may be able to avoid some of the risks.10 Reasons Why It's Great To Be a Night Owl It will take far more research to determine whether this pendulum swing in chronotype results from social pressures - such as school and work start times - or whether it is triggered by hormonal changes, for example. In older age, as we pull back from society’s cut and thrust, we tend to go back to rising early. Though scientists are still unsure why our preferences morph as we age, modern living may drive this pattern, at least in part.Īs children, we are more likely to rise early, but as we become embedded in society, we are more likely to develop into night owls. For instance, the existing body of literature does not provide much information about why our circadian rhythms and eating patterns shift throughout our lifespans. The review also highlights gaps in our understanding. Karagounis continues, “Further research on the best methods to assess an individual’s chronotype and how this may affect their long-term cardiometabolic health can potentially guide the development of health promotion strategies aimed at preventing and treating chronic diseases based on an individual’s chronotype.” “Scientific evidence is providing increasing insight into the relationship between your chronotype, diet, and cardiometabolic health.” Perhaps unsurprisingly, children were much more likely to be early risers, including 90 percent of 2-year-olds and 58 percent of 6-year-olds.Īs people enter old age, they are more likely to revert to their early-rising preferences of youth.Īlthough this type of study is still in the initial stages, and much more research is needed, the findings to date may have huge implications for public health. The review uncovered some other interesting findings. This goes against the body’s regular biological processes, and so it could impact metabolism. However, because night owls eat later in the day, glucose levels spike just before bedtime. Throughout the day, glucose levels decline, and by the evening they are at their lowest point. The body’s circadian fluctuations in glucose metabolism may mediate the link with type 2 diabetes. The leader of the study, Suzana Almoosawi, Ph.D., a research fellow at Northumbria University in the United Kingdom, explains that “In adulthood, being an evening chronotype is associated with greater risk of heart disease and type 2 diabetes, and this may be potentially due to the poorer eating behavior and diet of people with evening chronotype.”Īccording to the researchers, being a night owl can even affect the way a person manages their diabetes: “Our review also found that people who have a poorer control of their diabetes are more likely to be evening types,” says Almoosawi. In fact, one study showed that night owls were 2.5 times more likely to have type 2 diabetes than early risers. This eating pattern may explain the finding that night owls had an increased risk of heart disease and metabolic conditions, such as type 2 diabetes. They also ate less often but had bigger meals. In addition, night owls were likelier to consume fewer vegetables and grains. Night owls were also more likely to skip breakfast. The team found that individuals who went to bed later tended to have less healthful eating patterns.įor instance, they generally ate later in the day, at less regular times, and they consumed more alcohol, sugar, and caffeinated products than earlier risers. Scientists are working to determine the long-term health effects of these changes.īecause this area of study is in its infancy, the authors of the recent review delved into previous studies, hoping to identify patterns in results. These disruptions can alter cyclical metabolic processes, such as glucose control, lipid metabolism, and blood pressure. Exposure to artificial light sources can also misalign our circadian patterns. The scientists were especially interested in understanding the relationship between circadian rhythms and eating patterns - called chrono-nutrition - and overall cardiometabolic health.īecause modern life is often hectic, eating and sleeping patterns may frequently be disturbed.
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