People who stay up late are more likely to engage in unhealthy lifestyle behaviors that can lead to developing type 2 diabetes, according to a new study.
Self-described “night owls” were more likely to exercise less, eat unhealthy diets, have a higher body mass index, sleep less, and smoke cigarettes than early risers. according to the report published in the Annals of Internal Medicine.
He Nurses’ Health Study II analyzed data from more than 60,000 nurses and found that middle-aged nurses with a nighttime chronotype were more likely to report unhealthy lifestyle habits and have a higher risk of diabetes than nurses with a morning chronotype.
About 19% of night-owl nurses were more likely to develop diabetes, according to researchers who took into account the impact of the listed unhealthy habits.
“A 19% increase in risk, after adjusting for other factors, is a significant risk factor,” said the study’s senior author, Tianyi Huang, an assistant professor at Harvard Medical School, according to NBC News.
Sleep study:“Night owls” are more likely to die younger, but the problem is not sleep.
Participants in the study included 11% self-identified night owls, 35% early risers, and 54% who did not identify much as either morning or evening people.
Why late sleepers tend to die earlier than early risers
Early risers tend to live longer than night owls, study finds June study in the peer-reviewed journal International Chronobiology. However, research shows that the observation may have gaps, since sleep is not so much a reason as the behaviors that night owls adopt.
The research analyzed data from more than 20,000 participants in a 1981 survey on sleeping habits.
About 29% of survey participants reported being morning people, nearly 10% said they were night people, nearly 28% said they were “somewhat” morning people, and 33% said they were “somewhat” night people.
Even after adjusting for factors such as age, body mass index, sleep duration and health problems, the study authors found that self-proclaimed night owls were more likely than early risers to die younger.
Contributing: Adrianna Rodríguez