Lark of the morning? Night owl? Blame your genes, according to a study

AFP-JIJI – If you find that you can not get up every morning, you may be able to blame your genes, according to a new scientific study.

The research badyzed a wealth of genetic data collected from the DNA testing website 23andme and a British "biobank" to better understand what makes someone a "lark". "or a" night owl ".

"This study is important because it confirms that your preference for the morning or evening is, at least to some extent, determined by genetic factors," said Michael Weedon, a professor at the University's Faculty of Medicine. Exeter, who led the research.

The study is the largest of its kind – it examined data from nearly 700,000 people – and found that the number of genetic factors related to sleep and sleep reactivation significantly more than expected.

Researchers knew 24 sleep-related genes, but the new study published Wednesday in Nature Communications found that 327 others play a role.

The badysis also showed that people with a genetic tendency to sleep later are at higher risk for mental health problems such as schizophrenia, although the authors warned that more work was needed to understand the link. .

The initial phase of the research consisted in badyzing the genes of people who declared themselves as "morning people" or "evening people".

As these terms may have different meanings for different people, the researchers looked at a smaller group of participants using activity follow-ups.

They examined the information provided by the wrist followers of more than 85,000 participants in the British biobank to find objective data on their sleep patterns.

They found that the genes they identified could change a person's natural sleep time by up to 25 minutes, but there was no apparent link between the genes and the duration or quality of their sleep.

The study also examined why some genes influence people's sleep and waking, finding differences in how the brain reacts to light and in the functioning of internal clocks.

To test ancient theories about the links between sleep patterns and certain diseases, the researchers also badyzed the correlation between the "morning" and "evening" genes and various disorders.

They discovered that a genetic inclination earlier to sleep and wake up seems to be linked to a lower risk of depression and schizophrenia and to an improvement in well-being.

However, Weedon acknowledged that it was not clear whether the link was directly related to being a "morning person" or whether it was caused by the fact that the lifts -Fast have more ease in the working environment from 9am to 5am.

Researchers are considering whether "genetically affected late-night people perform worse in the morning than those with genetics and activity aligned," he said.

The study did not highlight any causal link between genes that affect sleep and metabolic diseases, such as type 2 diabetes.

But later research will examine the question in individuals whose natural inclinations of sleep do not correspond to their lifestyles.

"For example, should genetically nocturnal people wake up early because of work commitments especially exposed to obesity and diabetes?", Asks the study.