Thrive at night?

Did you stay up late last night to usher in the New Year? While some folks thrive as they stay awake late into the night, others don't. Night owls have different brains! You'd be interested in what's behind this...

While some folks find that ideas and good work occur late at night, others who try find themselves very drained in the morning. Not too surprisingly, at 9:00 a.m., other folks' brains work at prime. What makes the difference in night owls and early risers?

Night owls have a gene that works more resiliently than those without. Their brains become more active as they tire. Scans show that these folks responded to fatigue by garnering more brain structures to help them perform well on a memory test, according to recent research.

Brains definitely function differently for night owls and early birds

Using magnetic resonance imaging-guided brain stimulation, scientists tested muscle torque and the excitability of pathways through the spinal cord and brain. They found that morning people's brains were most excitable at 9 a.m. This slowly decreased through the day. It was the polar opposite for evening people, whose brains were most excitable at 9 p.m.

Other major findings:

• Evening people became physically stronger throughout the day, but the maximum amount of force morning people could produce remained the same.


• The excitability of reflex pathways that travel through the spinal cord increased over the day for both groups.


• These findings show that nervous-system functions are different and have implications for maximizing human performance.

No matter which circadian rhythm is genetically wired in your brain, work with, rather than against the way your brain is wired as much as possible. When night owl friends play stimulating games on New Year's eve and you feel sleepy, try to stay where the light is bright. Bright light is known to increase your alertness at night.

Thoughts?