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| source : studyfinds.org |
I used to wear my night owl badge with pride, staying up past midnight, buzzing with ideas, feeling like the quiet hours gave me secret superpowers. But after diving into the latest research, I’m rethinking whether my late-night lifestyle might come with some unexpected consequences… especially for my brain.
A recent study out of the Netherlands caught my eye, and not just because it linked being a night owl to an increased risk of cognitive decline. What’s more interesting (and a little concerning) is why.
Spoiler alert: it’s not just because we go to bed late.
Night Owl vs Early Bird: Is There Really a Difference?
Turns out, yes, and it runs deeper than your sleep schedule.
According to sleep researcher Ana Wenzler at the University of Groningen, about 30% of people are natural night owls, while 40% are morning larks. The rest? Somewhere in between.
This concept of your "chronotype" essentially, your body’s preferred internal clock, is mostly determined by biology. You don’t choose to be a night owl; it’s just how your circadian rhythm is wired.
But here’s where it gets tricky: our society is built for morning people. From 8 a.m. meetings to school drop-offs, most systems reward early risers. So if you’re naturally wired to stay up later, you’re probably:
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Getting less sleep (hello, 6 a.m. alarms)
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Missing out on deep, restorative rest
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And maybe even developing habits that don’t exactly help your brain stay sharp
What the Research Found (and Why It Matters)
Wenzler’s team analyzed sleep and lifestyle data from nearly 24,000 people over a decade, and the results were eye-opening.
People who identified as night owls showed faster cognitive decline than morning people.
But here’s the part that really made me pause: the problem wasn’t just the sleep schedule. It was what night owls tend to do because of it.
Late-night types were more likely to:
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Smoke
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Drink more alcohol
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Skip regular exercise
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Eat poorly
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Sleep too little due to early obligations
In fact, Wenzler found that 25% of the risk of cognitive decline was tied to smoking and poor sleep habits alone.
Can You “Fix” Being a Night Owl?
Here’s the reality: you can’t fully force yourself to be a morning person if your body isn’t built that way.
“You can try to go to sleep earlier,” Wenzler said, “but if your body isn’t producing melatonin yet, it won’t work.”
So instead of trying to fight your inner night owl, the smarter move might be to work with it, and make healthier choices within your natural rhythm.
My Personal Take (and What I’m Changing)
As someone who gets their second wind around 10 p.m., this study was a gut check. But it’s not a death sentence, it’s a call to action.
Here’s how I’m adapting:
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Protecting my sleep window: If I can’t fall asleep at 10 p.m., I make sure I’m still getting a solid 7–8 hours, even if that means shifting my wake-up time slightly when I can.
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Evening workouts: Yes, they’re still effective, and help me wind down without going for a midnight snack.
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Limiting late-night screen time: Blue light delays melatonin production. I use warmer screen filters and cut off scrolling an hour before bed.
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No guilt bedtime: I stopped judging myself for not being a 5 a.m. warrior and instead focused on optimizing the quality of my rest and routines.
The Bigger Picture
This study matters not because it tells us we’re doomed for staying up late, but because it reminds us that our habits compound over time.
Cognitive decline and dementia aren’t random. They’re influenced by decades of choices: how we sleep, how we move, what we consume, and how we treat our minds and bodies.
So whether you’re a morning lark or a night owl, the question isn’t what time you go to bed. It’s whether your lifestyle, no matter the hour, supports your long-term brain health.
And that, thankfully, is something we can influence.
TL;DR:
- Being a night owl isn’t the problem, it’s the poor sleep, lifestyle habits, and stress that often come with it.
- Studies now show a faster risk of cognitive decline and dementia in night owls, largely due to behavior.
- The good news? You can build smarter habits around your sleep style to protect your brain for the long haul.