A study by researchers at Imperial College London compared data from 26,000 people to understand how sleep timings, duration and chronotype (basically, whether a person is a night owl or a morning lark) affect cognitive functioning and reasoning.
It’s a boring question often asked on an uninspiring first date: Are you a night owl or a morning lark? It leads to a predictable conversation, almost as insipid as those about zodiac signs. A debate may follow about the benefits of joining the “5 am club” and just how important early morning “me time” is for pre-dawn enthu cutlets. On the other hand, the late-nighters romanticise the quiet of the night and how the creative juices flow better after a post-prandial drink. So the conversation goes, with an argument that cannot be settled hanging in the air. But perhaps, the matter can be settled through science.
A study by researchers at Imperial College London compared data from 26,000 people to understand how sleep timings, duration and chronotype (basically, whether a person is a night owl or a morning lark) affect cognitive functioning and reasoning. The worst off are those who don’t get the right amount of sleep — both too much and too little are bad. Then come the much-vaunted early risers, who fall behind those who stay up late at night when it comes to brain functioning. Understandably, the study is being brandished on social media by those who like to sleep in. Long dismissed as lazy, they are citing science to defend their nocturnal leanings.
It might, however, be too early to call it a day on the sleep debate. Studies come and go, and there will certainly always be political leaders and corporate bosses showing off about how much they work and how little they sleep — unlike mere mortals who want less of the first and more of the second. Science can hardly hold a candle to such self-righteousness. Perhaps that’s okay. Some pointless debates — whether there should be pineapple on pizza, if there can be such a thing as vegetarian biryani and, of course, night owls vs 5 am-types — are needed for those boring dates.
© The Indian Express Pvt Ltd
First uploaded on: 13-07-2024 at 06:50 IST
