For as long as I can remember, I've always considered myself to be more of a night owl. Even as I’m writing this, it’s past 11 o’clock. I often find that I have more energy later in the day than earlier, provided that I get enough sleep the night before. But therein lies the conundrum; as a night owl, it's harder for me to get to sleep when I need to, especially if I have to get up early the next morning. I’ve tried eating foods that are full of melatonin, wearing myself down with exercise, and sometimes even climbing into bed as early as nine o’clock to no avail. So why can’t I sleep?
I looked up a good amount of information about symptoms night owls possibly share, thinking I might have some degree of insomnia, but was quite surprised at what I found. It appears that a number of studies from reputable sources (such as the University of Madrid, The Huffington Post, Psychology Today and others) found that people who tend to stay up later into the night were more intelligent, inquisitive, and less stressed than their early-rising counterparts. But why?
One theory suggests that it’s an evolutionary thing. In the past, our ancestors adhered to the hours of the day: daytime meant work, nighttime meant rest. But as the world has changed, so have the people inhabiting it by developing a “higher level of cognitive complexity” with night owls in particular showing the greatest amount. It’s believed that those who are able to adapt more quickly to a new lifestyle routine over their ingrained instincts of getting to bed early are considered more progressive and open-minded.
In a study by Satoshi Kanazawa for Study Magazine, it was found that those who are more inclined to moonbeams than sunlight are indeed more intelligent. Looking at Americans in their 20s, those that tested as “dull” (less than 75 IQ) went to sleep around 11:30 PM and woke up around 7:30 AM on weekdays. Compare that to those that tested as “very bright” (above 125 IQ) who went to sleep around 12:30 AM and arose around 8:00 AM on weekdays. That might not seem like much of a difference, but this is only one of many studies that support the idea that sleep and intelligence are correlated.
Is that to say that staying up late is a win-win situation? Definitely not. Night owls have also to been shown to sometimes have bad eating habits, weaker immune systems, and are more prone to things like anxiety, depression, substance abuse, and sleep disorders (though really, that last one shouldn’t come as a surprise). Early risers have also been shown to be more conscientious, and proactive, which just goes to show that they really do get the worm.
There’s certainly two sides to both parts of this equation, even though I may be focusing on only one of them. I’ve often found that balance is key to many things in life, and I suppose that sleep is no different. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I must be getting to bed. Goodnight, everyone.
All research and evidence was taken from these links:
People Who Sleep Late Tend to Have a Higher IQ
People Who Sleep Late Are Actually Smarter And More Creative
Intelligent People All Have One Thing In Common: They Stay Up Later Than You
