Whether you are a night owl or an early bird, don’t bother fighting the impulse because it’s probably in your genes, a study suggested Tuesday.
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In a study of more than 89,000 people, personal genetics company 23andMe has identified 15 genetic variants associated with “morningness” and four that have not previously been connected to sleep behaviour.
Circadian rhythm is a biological process, consisting of roughly 24-hour cycle.
In the analysis, researchers identified 15 gene locations in DNA linked to “morningness”.
Past studies presented genes linked to animal’s circadian rhythms.
Most people are exhausted in the morning, but being a morning person has many health benefits.
“The beauty of 23andMe is the ability to conduct research on common traits like being a lark or a night owl, which affect everyone, yet typically wouldn’t receive funding for a study”, senior research scientist and coauthor Dr. David Hinds said. Specifically, asking someone whether they’re a morning or night person begs for a subjective answer, since everyone has their own definition for what these terms mean.
The 23andMe scientists also plotted the customers whose “morningness” and “night owl” status was analyzed – and came up with a map showing that morning people were spread out among a far geographic distribution in the United States. Although in previous decades, late sleepers would often just be considered lazy and “improper”, people could not have been more wrong than that. Those people who rise up early in the morning are less likely to have insomnia and less likely to suffer depression compared to those who reported being night person. The 44 percent that enjoyed an early start to their day were most likely to be women and adults over the age of 60.
On the other hand, self-confessed morning folks are less likely to sleep walk or sweat during sleep.
They say their work will help future research into Circadian rhythms and sleep disorders. The findings are said to be prove beneficial in understanding the bodily clocks.
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They were questioned about their sleep hours and their lifestyle preferences.
