Night owls or morning people: Whose hair grows faster?

[hairstuck]

Does being a night owl slow hair growth and promote wrinkles?

Does being a morning person help?

Is it about the number of hours of good sleep, not when you do it?

Someone told me that people who go to sleep before 10 p.m. don't wrinkle as quickly as those who stay up later (and sleep later). I can't find anything about this to verify, and find it hard to believe.

Supposedly, Adrenocorticotropic (ACTH) hormones and growth hormones are secreted when a person is asleep, just before dawn. The "ideal" time for sleep si then supposed to be from 10 p.m. - 6 a.m.

Any scientific studies to back this up?

[auburntressed]

Someone told me that people who go to sleep before 10 p.m. don't wrinkle as quickly as those who stay up later (and sleep later). I can't find anything about this to verify, and find it hard to believe.

Any scientific credibility to back this up?
Sounds like an old wives' tale to me, and I doubt there is much reliable scientific information on time of day of sleeping.

I think there is a wealth of information on various ways that getting ENOUGH sleep can be beneficial, but I have never heard any connections to wrinkles and hair growth. Most of what I have read or heard has to do with stress levels.

Logically, assuming the amount of sleep one gets is sufficient, being a night owl should help prevent wrinkles. Because you would be up and around when the sun is down, therefore getting less sun exposure. The sun is one of the three things that damages and ages the skin the most (the other two being make-up and smoking).

[Amber_Maiden]

I do believe that morning people's hair probably grows faster, and are probably healthier overall. Makes since in a biological and evolutionary sense- we hunt/father during the day, and at night when we can't see much- we sleep. Technological advances only allow us to stay up all night on our computers, or work at night.

[Amanah]

My Sister tells me that when she worked nights she never felt rested; it seems to go against the natural body rhythms

I would not rule out the possibility of this having a potentially adverse affect on health.

[Bene]

My Sister tells me that when she worked nights she never felt rested; it seems to go against the natural body rhythms

I would not rule out the possibility of this having a potentially adverse affect on health.


True night owls, as long as they get enough sleep aren't suffering any negative health effects. If anything they don't feel adequately rested while working day shifts. Day people may feel terrible working a nightshift because it doesn't coincide with their personal sleep patterns, that doesn't make it a universal description.

There's no one natural body rhythm, depending on the individual, and it can shift several times over a lifetime. There are several including day and night people. There are people like me who seem to work better on a schedule that would require a 30+ hour day. I've heard of people who would function best on a 20 hour day. And because those needs don't line up with day and night, they can appear to be day people for a few days in a row, and then night owls for another few days.





So, to answer the thread, I think day or night necessities are irrelevant to hair growth.

[Shiranshoku]

I guess it could play a role, but I don't think it's really a determining factor... I don't think that getting up earlier or sleeping more would give a measurable difference in hair growth rate for most people.

The sun being bad for your skin, now THAT is a cold hard fact. It drives me crazy when people laugh at me or even call me names because of my pale skin and milky legs, or people even say that I don't take good care of myself and my looks because I don't take any measures to tan... When in fact I'm the one who's being responsible.

[sapphire-o]

Nearly everybody in my family are night owls, so I can't really compare the hair growth rate with morning people. So far everyone's hair grows the standard 1/2" per month.

I naturally get sleepy at 5am everyday and feel most alert at midnight. Even if I've been busy all day and feel pretty tired, I perk up at midnight and never feel sleepy until hours later. Not sure what I can do about that other than taking loads of drugs. I think I look pretty young. But then everyone here look pretty young because of the lack of sun light most the the time. :)

[pepperminttea]

There are people like me who seem to work better on a schedule that would require a 30+ hour day. I've heard of people who would function best on a 20 hour day. And because those needs don't line up with day and night, they can appear to be day people for a few days in a row, and then night owls for another few days.

This is me, too. (I don't suppose you're another Non-24? :) ) The best amount of sleep for me, plus the amount of hours I can operate comfortably at is over twenty-four, so left to my own devices my days go round the clock, as if I'm waking in a different timezone every day. At the moment I'm on a more or less normal sleep pattern thanks to medicinal help so I can hold down regular hours, but I work and feel best on a longer day.

It doesn't seem to have affected my hair growth at all - as long as I get enough sleep, whatever time it's taken.

[EtherealDoll]

Someone told me that people who go to sleep before 10 p.m. don't wrinkle as quickly as those who stay up later (and sleep later). I can't find anything about this to verify, and find it hard to believe.




That's an old wive's tale, just like night owls being more intelligent than morning people, morning people being happier than night owls, etc.
The important thing is to get enough sleep, so if you go to bed at 1 am and wake up at 9 or 10, it's totally fine.

[Bene]

This is me, too. (I don't suppose you're another Non-24? :) ) The best amount of sleep for me, plus the amount of hours I can operate comfortably at is over twenty-four, so left to my own devices my days go round the clock, as if I'm waking in a different timezone every day. At the moment I'm on a more or less normal sleep pattern thanks to medicinal help so I can hold down regular hours, but I work and feel best on a longer day.

It doesn't seem to have affected my hair growth at all - as long as I get enough sleep, whatever time it's taken.


Dude, I can function for a full 24-26 hours straight through. That's when I start heading off to sleep, sometimes I'm stubborn and stay up, get punchy around hour 30. Makes people nuts to think that I'm still walking around wide awake, my friends have learned to stop getting all freaked out. They no longer send me texts along the lines of "Get your ass to sleep already!!!!" :D

I haven't found it affects my hair growth. Still get my half inch a month. At times when I dose myself with sleep aids to suit a schedule, I still get my half inch a month.

[blaketob]

I think being a night owl can promote more wrinkles because your staying up instead of getting a good nights sleep. I don't think it makes sense if it were the opposite way. About hair growth though, I'm not sure. I don't think there would be proof. However, people who are night owls tend to be more stressed (in my opinion) hence not being able to fall asleep at night. Stress can cause slower growth.

[pepperminttea]

Dude, I can function for a full 24-26 hours straight through. That's when I start heading off to sleep, sometimes I'm stubborn and stay up, get punchy around hour 30. Makes people nuts to think that I'm still walking around wide awake, my friends have learned to stop getting all freaked out. They no longer send me texts along the lines of "Get your ass to sleep already!!!!" :D

I haven't found it affects my hair growth. Still get my half inch a month. At times when I dose myself with sleep aids to suit a schedule, I still get my half inch a month.

Heh, those texts sound familiar! At uni I had a sign on my door that I flipped between 'Awake' and 'Asleep' purely because the friends I lived with had no idea with my schedule. :lol: And I have been known to do thirty hour days too; you can get so much done, it's rather satisfying. :D

[Bene]

Heh, those texts sound familiar! At uni I had a sign on my door that I flipped between 'Awake' and 'Asleep' purely because the friends I lived with had no idea with my schedule. :lol: And I have been known to do thirty hour days too; you can get so much done, it's rather satisfying. :D


You ever see Men In Black? There's a scene where they explain that they're on Centaurian Time, it's a 37 hour day. When I saw that, I wanted so bad to live in that universe :o. Like, man, I could really be happy on a 37 hour day.


ETA:

Looked up the line, the guy says "The twins keep us on Centaurian time, standard thirty-seven hour day. Give it a few months. You'll get used to it... or you'll have a psychotic episode. "

Psychotic breakdown? Pfft. I'd squee if I got to live on Centaurian time.

[jacqueline101]

I think its a personal thing its what your body is used to.

[barely.there]

hubby is a night owl, im a morning chipper :D His hair grows much faster than mine, but I believe that is due to hair genetics and has nothing to do with sleep patterns. the rest of my family has short short hair. his family can grow their hair out in just a few months. its sickening.

[patienceneeded]

hubby is a night owl, im a morning chipper :D His hair grows much faster than mine, but I believe that is due to hair genetics and has nothing to do with sleep patterns. the rest of my family has short short hair. his family can grow their hair out in just a few months. its sickening.

This! I had to lol, this describes DH and I perfectly. His hair grows ultra fast, as does his whole family. He's a night owl too. I prefer to be in bed by 10pm.

[HappyHair87]

Hmmm... I wake up every 4 hours. If i go to sleep at 12am...i wake up at 4 and then 8 like clockwork.

Ppl tell me all the time i look a lot younger than my actual age. I get carded everywhere and also get student discounts sometimes (happened at the county fair one year lol). I rarely ever go to sleep before 10pm and sometimes i don't fall asleep until the sun comes up.

I'm quite nocturnal.

My hair does seem to grow kinda fast.

[hairstuck]

Interesting.

[BrightEyes]

Mmm, interesting. My DH is a night owl and he gets a regular 1 inch of growth a month (I cut his hair and often curse how fast his growth rate is.....just kidding, I'm really jealous lol).

I am a morning person and get the usual 1/2 inch a month.

[leslissocool]

I'm a night owl and my hair grows fast :cheese:.

However, I am terrified it will make me age. My friend's mom worked a graveyard shift and she did look a lot older than she really was.

[jeanniet]

I never go to bed before 10 (hell, I stay up too late way too often--last night I was up until 2ish), and I have very few wrinkles. I think that's related to genetics more than anything else. I wish I could operate on about a 30 hour day, but since no one else seems to go along with that, I can't. :mad:

I don't think hair growth has anything to do with anything except genetics and a halfway decent diet for most people.

[jojo]

Sounds like, nonsense to me, so what about when I'm in another time zone? Do I wrinkle more and grow slower?

I'm a night owl yet at 43 I hardly have any wrinkles and my hair grows pretty quick! :p

The ageing process is all down to genes, I come from a pretty youngish looking family!

[lmfbs]

I'm not sure if this is a serious thread or not. Hair growth depends on nutrition and blood flow. There's nothing inherently healthy about being a morning person or unhealthy about being a night owl, or vice versa. As for wrinkles, that's another wives tale. My guess is that people who are night owls who have more wrinkles have them because they're getting less sleep, not because of when they're sleeping.

For example, I'm a night owl, but I start work at 830am. I often don't have dinner until 10pm, and can't remember the last time I went to sleep before midnight. I'm often not even thinking about going to bed until 3 or 4am. I get up at 730am, so get 4-5 hours sleep on a regular basis.

In an ideal world, I'd start work at 11am or 12pm so I can sleep longer, but sadly, there's not a huge market for night owl lawyers!

[Avital88]

i also read somehwere that your liver only cleans itself between 11pm and 2 am ,so if u dont sleep u miss that, it could of course work against you and show in aging of the body.
I believe in things like this, if i go to sleep at the right hours i look better, i can sleep 8 hrs but if that is when i go to bed at 6 in the morning it will show.i used to work nightshifts and my skin suffered from it.

[long&blonde]

I think its genetics, and not at all the hours you sleep,or care with health one takes. Unfair but true,I think. Don't we all have friends who go on benders, abuse their health in all kinds of ways, rarely sleep:yet have glorious thick fast growing hair, and look like they stepped out of a magazine photo. Lol.

[lmfbs]

i also read somehwere that your liver only cleans itself between 11pm and 2 am ,so if u dont sleep u miss that, it could of course work against you and show in aging of the body.
I believe in things like this, if i go to sleep at the right hours i look better, i can sleep 8 hrs but if that is when i go to bed at 6 in the morning it will show.i used to work nightshifts and my skin suffered from it.

I think what you're referring to here is your body's circadian rhythm - everyone's is slightly different and there are definitely times when your body is better suited to sleep than others.

About the liver thing - I'd say with almost 100% certainty that it's a myth. I haven't slept between 11pm and 2am for more than 1 night at a time in probably 3 years and my liver is perfectly healthy. There are people who work nightshifts for decades and their livers are fine too.

It's funny all the myths and wives tales out there, huh?

[Arashi]

I believe a lot of people are confusing being a night owl with being an insomniac.

To me, being a night owl means that my natural inclination is to be awake during the night and to sleep during the day. It is during the evening hours that I feel most awake, with a clear mind and energy to be productive, while during daylight hours I seem to have a perpetual brain cloud.

I am not a night owl due to stress and I get plenty of sleep. It's simply the nature of my body's clock. With that said, why on earth should being awake during the night instead of the day make one age faster or slow their hair growth? A lack of sleep might do that, but being a night owl doesn't mean you're awake at night in addition to keeping the regular daylight hours most people keep.

Anyway, I am a night owl and I get average to above average hair growth rates. No sign of early aging either, especially since I am rarely exposed to the sun. :)

[Sophiatrist]

I am definitely a morning person. And my hair grows pretty fast. I have no idea if there is a relationship.

[Astraea]

You ever see Men In Black? There's a scene where they explain that they're on Centaurian Time, it's a 37 hour day. When I saw that, I wanted so bad to live in that universe :o. Like, man, I could really be happy on a 37 hour day.


ETA:

Looked up the line, the guy says "The twins keep us on Centaurian time, standard thirty-seven hour day. Give it a few months. You'll get used to it... or you'll have a psychotic episode. "

Psychotic breakdown? Pfft. I'd squee if I got to live on Centaurian time.

I loved that scene! This is me exactly, no one I know understands it and I get crazy comments/emails/texts all the time :D. I've been this way since I was a small child and it just works, I tried squeezing myself into a shorter day the results were uncomfortable to say the least. I don't have difficulty sleeping, I love sleep and I feel really invigorated throughout my blissfully long day.

My hair and nails grow REALLY fast and I get compliments on how I look younger than my age but I think it's just an individual/hereditary thing. Fun question though!

[lmfbs]

I believe a lot of people are confusing being a night owl with being an insomniac.

To me, being a night owl means that my natural inclination is to be awake during the night and to sleep during the day. It is during the evening hours that I feel most awake, with a clear mind and energy to be productive, while during daylight hours I seem to have a perpetual brain cloud.

I am not a night owl due to stress and I get plenty of sleep. It's simply the nature of my body's clock. With that said, why on earth should being awake during the night instead of the day make one age faster or slow their hair growth? A lack of sleep might do that, but being a night owl doesn't mean you're awake at night in addition to keeping the regular daylight hours most people keep.

Anyway, I am a night owl and I get average to above average hair growth rates. No sign of early aging either, especially since I am rarely exposed to the sun. :)

Weird, I was expecting something similar in this thread (confusion between night owls and insomniac) but hadn't seen it. Do you mean on this thread, or in general? I'm confused.

[Bene]

Weird, I was expecting something similar in this thread (confusion between night owls and insomniac) but hadn't seen it. Do you mean on this thread, or in general? I'm confused.

I think this:


I believe a lot of people are confusing being a night owl with being an insomniac.


might be in reference to this:


I think being a night owl can promote more wrinkles because your staying up instead of getting a good nights sleep. I don't think it makes sense if it were the opposite way. About hair growth though, I'm not sure. I don't think there would be proof. However, people who are night owls tend to be more stressed (in my opinion) hence not being able to fall asleep at night. Stress can cause slower growth.



And I agree. Night owls aren't awake at odd hours because they're so stressed they can't sleep. So, it looks like there is a confusion between night owls and insomniacs.

[Arashi]

Weird, I was expecting something similar in this thread (confusion between night owls and insomniac) but hadn't seen it. Do you mean on this thread, or in general? I'm confused.
Oops, I should have clarified in the original post: I meant in general. :o There seem to be a couple instances of it on this thread also, though.

[lmfbs]

I think this:




might be in reference to this:





And I agree. Night owls aren't awake at odd hours because they're so stressed they can't sleep. So, it looks like there is a confusion between night owls and insomniacs.

Ah right, must have missed that, thanks!

[pepperminttea]

You ever see Men In Black? There's a scene where they explain that they're on Centaurian Time, it's a 37 hour day. When I saw that, I wanted so bad to live in that universe :o. Like, man, I could really be happy on a 37 hour day.


ETA:

Looked up the line, the guy says "The twins keep us on Centaurian time, standard thirty-seven hour day. Give it a few months. You'll get used to it... or you'll have a psychotic episode. "

Psychotic breakdown? Pfft. I'd squee if I got to live on Centaurian time.

That was such a good movie! :D And agreed, Centaurian time would be wonderful! Perhaps not for everyone else, but that would make a change. :p

[Tisiloves]

That was such a good movie! :D And agreed, Centaurian time would be wonderful! Perhaps not for everyone else, but that would make a change. :p

Yes, Centurian time, no one saying "No go to bed now, you have to be up at some insane time that you're not going to be up at for naturally at least 3 days yet".:D

[Shepherdess]

I tend to stay up way later than I should. My siblings all call me a night owl. I don't know if it affects my hair growth or not; people I know seem to think my hair grows fast. Oftentimes at nighttime (from 9:00PM-1:00am) I feel hyper, although I rarely have trouble falling asleep once I do get in bed. But I'm still young, so maybe it wouldn't affect me as much. Lately I have been trying to get on a better schedule and go to bed earlier, so I'll see if anything changes. I think that as long as you get enough hours of sleep, that is what matters. :)

[pepperminttea]

Yes, Centurian time, no one saying "No go to bed now, you have to be up at some insane time that you're not going to be up at for naturally at least 3 days yet".:D

I don't know what made me laugh more; this, or your reason for editing. :lol:

[blondie9912]

No scientific proof, but whenever I sleep from 3AM-noon I wouldn't feel anywhere near as well rested as when I would sleep from 9PM-6AM. I agree with the "body's natural rhythm" idea, I've never been able to sleep all that well when the sun is up (during the daytime).

I would say that when you feel more rested you're probably healthier overall, which promotes better hair growth. One reason (in additional to the warmer weather) that I feel my hair grows faster in the summer is due to adequate amounts of sleep nightly.

[jojo]

I think what you're referring to here is your body's circadian rhythm - everyone's is slightly different and there are definitely times when your body is better suited to sleep than others.

About the liver thing - I'd say with almost 100% certainty that it's a myth. I haven't slept between 11pm and 2am for more than 1 night at a time in probably 3 years and my liver is perfectly healthy. There are people who work nightshifts for decades and their livers are fine too.

It's funny all the myths and wives tales out there, huh?

Yeah agree with this but it is a fact your immune system is at its lowest at 4 am, as a RN most of deaths are around this time but your body is constantly detoxing itself, everybody has a slightly different body clock and as long as you are healthy then all is ok. Of course things like bad diet, alcohol and cigarettes are going to have more of a toll on your health, hair and ageing process moreso than being a night owl!

[spirals]

I've been a night-owl my whole life. As long as I get my eight hours, I'm fine. I'm 38 with no wrinkles and people guess me at 28-33. But then, even though I was exposed to a lot of desert sun in my life, I always wore spackle on my face to cover first acne, then large pores and ruddiness. So maybe that's the real reason I look younger than I am. However, so does my dad. It could be genetic. Either way, sleep times probably have nothing to do with it. As for hair growth, I get 3/4 inch year-round.

[carolinaberry]

My clock is backwards. Without sleep aids, I naturally fall asleep between 4-6am and get up between 1-3pm. My doctor said that as long as I get sufficient sleep, there is nothing that says people who are on a "normal" schedule are healthier/happier/more natural/whatever. It is societal. There is this idea that people who sleep during the day are slobs, even if they are productive at night.

I think the people who are "night owls" that age faster try to fight their body clock and so get up during the day AND stay up at night. So, they aren't getting enough sleep.

[Bene]

Going on roughly 26 hours straight. I, for one, will welcome our Centaurian overlords when they arrive.

[spirals]

That was such a good movie! :D And agreed, Centaurian time would be wonderful! Perhaps not for everyone else, but that would make a change. :p

It's in my top ten. I own it and watch it frequently. I just picked up the second one and when I get a Saturday off I want to invite my current crush to see the third one with me. *goes to grab MIB from the cabinet*

[christine1989]

I don't go to sleep period without sleeping pills. I've literally stayed awake up to 4 days without using sleeping pills. I don't think I have a natural sleep cycle at all. "Sleep cycle" implies that you....ya know....sleep.

[tiarefleur]

I'm a night owl and have always had fast growth (at least an inch a month), so that's a no for me! I sleep well nowadays but when I used to have problems falling asleep, sometimes getting 4 to 5 hours a night, my hair still grew quickly!

[Dragon Faery]

Ooh, interesting topic!


This is me, too. (I don't suppose you're another Non-24? :) ) The best amount of sleep for me, plus the amount of hours I can operate comfortably at is over twenty-four, so left to my own devices my days go round the clock, as if I'm waking in a different timezone every day. At the moment I'm on a more or less normal sleep pattern thanks to medicinal help so I can hold down regular hours, but I work and feel best on a longer day.

It doesn't seem to have affected my hair growth at all - as long as I get enough sleep, whatever time it's taken.

pepperminttea, you made me feel soooo much better by saying this! ...Along with everyone else who said similar things. My whole life I have been a night owl, no matter what. The sun sets, and suddenly I'm wide awake, no matter how tired I've been during the day. The only sure way to trick myself into sleeping all night is to go to sleep before sunset. Otherwise my natural inclination is to stay awake until sunrise.

I tend to like to stay awake for 12-20 hours, then sleep for the same amount. I thought I was just a freak of some kind.

I've also had my insomniac periods, as I don't handle stress well. And chronic pain affects things, too. But when stress and pain aren't factors, the schedule I've described above is what my body prefers.

I haven't noticed any effect on my hair growth/lack thereof. But I do get tired of being considered "lazy".

[Diamond.Eyes]

I'm a night owl and my hair grows very fast! I knew staying up all night and sleeping in half the day would pay off some how...just kidding I don't sleep-in that much :laugh:. I'm not sure if my sleep pattern is beneficial to my growth, but I've always been late to go to sleep and early to rise. I think I'm just one of those people who doesn't need 8 hours of sleep. :shrug:

[grldollies]

Hmmm I am a night owl - about 10pm I recharge & "wake up", I get the most done at home between 11pm-2am, the rest of my family - DH & daughter rarely are up much past 11-11:30pm, getting thier must have 8 hrs of sleep. My daughter has the slowest growing super fine hair (she was still bald at 3 yrs old!) and mine grows faster then hers for sure. She has never had hair longer then shoulder length like my DH family. Looking at My DH family, mostly morning people & my family mostly night owls, My family have way less wrinkles and longer hair generally. I don’t think being a early bird or a night owl is the issue. Lifestyle & genetics is the real deal.


Originally Posted by Bene
You ever see Men In Black? There's a scene where they explain that they're on Centaurian Time, it's a 37 hour day. When I saw that, I wanted so bad to live in that universe . Like, man, I could really be happy on a 37 hour day.
Yes! :thumbsup:
I second that! I could go for a 37 hr day providing my work week is still 40hrs! I might get everything done and even have me time! - Gay :puppykisses:

[kiezel]

There have been no conclusive results as far as I have read concerning hair growth, but without getting into too many scientific details, you might want to consider the following facts:

The human body does have an internal "clock," and this clock regulates the hormones produced, some of which are only released at certain times. It has been found that certain reparative substances and processes are only able to fully function if the person is asleep at a certain time. Most of these repairing processes occur around 10pm each night.

[dwell_in_safety]

I'll soon be sleeping on a pretty strict 12a-9a schedule, so I'll get the best of both worlds. :D :p

[kidari]

I think that the sun can age you faster but it can also be beneficial to your health as well. The sun is a major source for your body to get vitamin D and there are many studies and statistics that show vitamin D deficiency is linked to a myriad of major health issues. So one way to see it is that someone who doesn't get many hours of sunlight may avoid sun damage and physical premature aging but they may suffer other health issues in the long run.

[xltorresx]

If I had to guess, I would say a good nights sleep would promote hair growth. Sleep is sooo important to over all health. My kids force me to get a good sleep, other wise I'd be a zombie all day, and my hair grows crazy fast. Could be a coincidence though.

[Luna12345]

I'm a night owl and my hair grows fast. My sister and brother are also night owls and their hair grows fast. I think it's genetic.

[blondie9912]

I agree with what others said about early sleepers/risers being generally healthier. I feel so much better sleeping from 9pm-7am than 3am-1pm, always.

[Tisiloves]

I agree with what others said about early sleepers/risers being generally healthier. I feel so much better sleeping from 9pm-7am than 3am-1pm, always.

I think it depends on the person 3am-1pm's about perfect for me, if I sleep 9pm-7am I feel like cr*p.

[shawty]

I'm a night owl and my hair grows faster than average.
However I'm getting my first permanent wrinkles already, at 22.
Basically there are a million factors so don't stress yourself out trying to be something you're not. <3

[aet2009]

Sorry to bring up an old thread, but my hair grows a full inch per month and I am routinely guessed at around 7 years younger than I am, but I am a huge night owl. I naturally get tired around 5 am and sleep til 3 PM if I can. So I don't think there's any truth to this rumor, at least for me. :)

[Cheele]

My hair grows .75" a month. I am a huuuugeeee night owl. Well... that's not necessarily true. I suppose I'm similar to what a few of you have already mentioned :o. I typically get tired after about 24-32 hours of being awake. Since this schedule is not conducive to my schooling at the moment, I'm left FORCING myself to fall asleep every night so I can be rested and not crash during my obligations. Which usually means I get 3-5 hours of sleep on a regular weekday. So, I'm usually looked at as a night owl because I stay awake later than most, and HATE life in the mornings (because I didn't sleep well enough). If I'm left to live with no obligations, I just stay up for about 26 hours, then crash for 7-8, then do it all over again. During this time, if my waking cycle happens at 5am I'd be completely peachy, just as I would be waking at 1pm. Oh, I miss those days.

I'm glad there's others out there, Non-24's are we? ;)

Oh yeah, I look like I'm 14 make-upless and 16 with make-up.
Genetics + my Gemini rising, I'm sure though.

[Sharysa]

Well, my hair grew from shoulder/collarbone length to mid-back in a year and is in very good condition, despite being very emphatically a night-owl.

I go to sleep at 11 or later and wake up around 8 or 9AM when given the chance, and even that's because I have work and class to worry about. Given an actual free day, I get tired at 1AM and wake up at 10AM.

[Dziip]

I should look for this study but I read one saying that teens tended to sleep later because during the evolution, that's the age one was in charge to guard the others by night.

[Sharysa]

In general, it's believed that some people are night-owls because while we lived in small groups, people needed to stay awake at night for security purposes.

But for me (and most likely other night-owls) it's a bitch because I wake up at EVERYTHING. Mom's door opens because she's heading to the bathroom? FJDKSLAA CAN'T SLEEP FOR THE NEXT TWENTY MINUTES.

As for teens specifically, I think it's also because the process of adolescence throws your body off for a while.

[vindo]

At night in our sleep the body does a lot of cell repairing.
Our body statistically does this more actively between 11 PM and 7 AM. (23:00- 7:00)
When it is dark our body releases more melantonin. But if we were to go to sleep in the early morning hours, we get less melantonin.

http://www.wellnesstips.ca/light%20effects%20hormones.htm
Just like the frogs, every cell in our body is light sensitive, and hormones are activated or deactivated and neurotransmitters such as serotonin and dopamine are released daily according to the light or lack of light sensed by our cells. The hormones that depend on a lack of light to function tend to be our "rest and repair" hormones, and the hormones that are activated by light tend to be the "coping with stress" hormones. When we stay up too late at night with the lights on, long after the sun has gone down, we don't get enough hours of tissue repair and immunity building. And on the flip side, with the extended hours we spend in the light, the stress hormones that are supposed to be active during the day only, wind up working overtime. There is no balance in the daily cycle between the day hormones like cortisol, insulin, and the night hormones like the antioxidant melatonin and the immune builder, prolactin. So we are stressed and tired, in a weakened state with poor immunity, and therefore we are sitting ducks for sickness and disease. And when any hormone is overly elevated for long periods of time the receptors that take in that hormone become resistant, which leads directly health problems.

I believe Dr. Kruse has also written about this?

[Helenae]

From MY personal experience, morning owls do have better overall health & better hair growth as a result of that.
I used to have a very routine sleeping pattern (11pm-8am) and I had incredible hip length hair with no hair-care at all. I would flat iron my hair 3 times a week and I STILL had great growth & I always felt energetic and rested. NOW I have a messed up sleeping pattern. I never sleep before 4am and I normally get 6-7 hours sleep on average (which is enough for some people, but my body requires more sleep or I feel awful). I've been looking after my hair in recent years without any heat or abrasive chemicals. Somehow... I can never get past waist length hair. It's pretty obvious that my hair growth is extremely slow or stalled because of my overall health which is directly linked to my sleeping pattern. Even if I sleep at 4am and get 9 hours sleep, I still feel groggy and tired. I honestly do think that it's more than an old-wives tail. The chemical balances in our body are in tune with day/night rhythms due to evolution. The only way someone could counteract this is if they were a third-generation night-owl sleeper or something, because their body would have adapted by then. If you read up on circadian rhythms and melatonin/serotonin levels, you'll understand more about sleeping patterns and why we are biologically made to sleep at night when it's dark.

No one has to agree with me, this is just my personal input from my experience and understanding. Hopefully, I'll be able to fix my sleeping patterns one day but it's just so damn hard.

[faellen]

I'm definitely a night owl, my hair has the average growth rate of 0.5" per month. Don't know about wrinkles; I'm 26.

[Sharysa]

People constantly say I look 18 or 19 years old when I turned 23 two weeks ago.

[WilfredAllen]

Night owls are up all night worrying about how their isn't growing fast enough, while the early birds get up early to get a head start on growing their hair!

[UltraBella]

My hair grows very fast, I often have an inch of growth per month - this is hereditary. (Thanks, Mom !) I am an extreme night owl and only get about 5-6 hrs of sleep per night.
As far as wrinkles, I think I'm looking pretty good for my age. I have a 17 year old daughter and no, I was not a teen mom. No gray hair, no obvious wrinkles and I get to stay up late browsing LHC ;)

[Naiadryade]

This is interesting. I'm not convinced, but I'm happy to add my experience to our data set!

It's almost 6am and I'm like, "shoot, I really should make myself go to sleep soon," despite having gotten only 6 hours of sleep last night because I had to get up early (almost 24 hours ago) for work... I thrive on 9 hours of sleep, but even when mildly sleep deprived I'm a huge night owl and my body just doesn't want to sleep at night! I'm also in the more-than-24 club... Left to my own devices, my 9-hour sleep block creeps later and later. I think my body thinks we're supposed to have 26-28 hour days.

I'm 25, and I'm one of those people who looks young. I recently got carded for a lighter and the cashier said she thought I was 16. 16! I told her I'm getting to the age where that's a serious compliment. But I think this is more because of genetics, a healthy diet, and usually getting enough sleep (regardless of the time of day) than anything else. My parents are 54 and 55 and don't have any wrinkles. They're day people, asleep by 10 or 11 and awake by 7 every day.

As for hair growth, it's really hard to say. I only recently got my split ends under control enough that I'm getting close to my growth rate in gained length. February-March I gained 1/2", but based on preliminary measurements I think March-April will be more like 3/4". But that's also affected by castor oil, scalp massage, and maybe even trimming by the Moon...

Also, my understanding is that the body needs to sleep in the dark for at least a little while in order to produce melatonin. But this can easily be achieved at high noon with heavy curtains, and that's good enough to make melatonin by.

[nobeltonya]

I'm kind of in between.. neither, really. And I also don't get as much sleep as I used to [having 2 kids, particularly a very stubborn 2.5 year old who doesn't sleep much anymore.. at least he finally sleeps in the night]. And my hair grows about average, if not slightly above [I get about 0.5" of growth a month, with micro-trimming about every 2 weeks]. It would make sense logically, I suppose, that the more regular sleep you get would affect how you age and many other things, b/c sleep is your body's way of rejuvenating itself, consolidating memories, etc. Also, I'm 28 now, and still look about 18.. XD Except that I do have 2 or 3 stubborn WHITE, really coarse hairs that occasionally pop out of my relatively dark chestnut hair.. :disco: