I am a self-proclaimed night owl and always have been. This was especially true during my student days, when I pulled frequent all nighters studying (alongside coffee and Red Bull of course) simply because that’s when I felt most focused. Of course, others prefer waking up at the crack of dawn. I never understood it, but hey – to each his own. Now, a fascinating study has emerged revealing that these attributes are actually linked to our genes. Apparently, something deeper in our personality’s makeup affects whether we like to be up up very early – or very late.
The study, published by the journal Frontiers in Neurology examines fruit flies, which as it turns out, have similar ‘genetic clocks’ to humans.
The scientists used these tiny “model organisms” to identify 80 different genes linked to differences in behavior.
Some of the flies tended to emerge from their pupal cases early in the morning, others preferred to “wake up” later in the day. The researchers bred the flies, and observed that similar patterns occurred in the flies sharing the same genes.
“Most people find that their performance is at peak at specific times of day,” Dr. Eran Tauber, one of the study’s co-authors told iflscience.com.
“The impact of this preference on health and behavior is well documented, but the molecular basis is largely unknown,” she added.
Ultimately, the researchers discovered that the molecular processes that lead to some people feeling more alert later in the day is basically completely different than those who don’t.
The scientists believe that this explains why so many of us today feel out of sync with the standard modern 9-5pm routine. No wonder I yawn so much every morning!
What is your ideal starting time in the morning? Leave your comments and feel free to share this study with all the night owls and morning birds you know.
