Night Owls versus Early Birds – an experiment by Millbrook Contract Beds

You’ve heard the terms ‘Early Bird’ and ‘Night Owl’ before right? Well, in the UK there is a strong mix of both. But which one wins? Which camp is better to fall into and why? The answer is already obvious to some people… early birds clearly win because they get a full sleep at the right time of day. Millbrook Contract Beds investigates this further.

A recent University study suggests there may be some truth to the centuries-old adage: “Early to bed and early to rise makes a man healthy, wealthy and wise,” which also happens to be one of our favourite sleep-related quotations!

Generally speaking, people who rise early feel happier and more satisfied at the end of each day than night owls do. But is it directly related to sleep? The answer is a resounding yes! Now night owls tend to be people of a younger age with a more hectic social life but that can change as they age. This is related to what’s called “social jet lag,” the idea that night owls’ biological clocks are out of sync with societal standards.

Researchers at the University of Toronto compared the responses of their test group of younger adults aged 17 to 38 with older people ages 59 to 79. The results showed that roughly seven per cent of young adults are morning larks, while by age 60 most people preferred to wake up with the dawn rather than see it in. Only a small percentage of the older surveyed persons admitted to staying up to the early hours. Night Owl-ing is a predominantly young person’s game.

So what exactly is so beneficial about being an Early Bird?

Firstly, healthier diet because you are more likely to have a proper breakfast at the right time if you get up early enough. This not only gives you energy for the day but it also helps you to avoid snacking on junk foods later on. Of course, more energy means more motivation to do things and therefore increased productivity at work and at home.

Early Birds are generally less stresses and more happy than their Night Owl counterparts.

So is it possible to change from being a Night Owl to an Early Bird?

Ms Biss (involved with the sleep research project) said there was hope for night owls to turn themselves into morning people.

‘One way to do it is to increase your natural light exposure early in the morning, and to wake up earlier and go to bed earlier,’ she said. ‘It’s easiest if you have a consistent schedule, to make sure you are waking up at the same time every day.’

So which are you? Early Bird or Night Owl? And more importantly, which would you rather be?

Did you know that from scientific studies over the years such as this one carried out recently, there have been over 86 sleep disorders uncovered linked or directly attributed to a lack of shut-eye?

Food for thought or should that be… for sleep?