For years, the debate has raged on over whether it’s better to be an early bird or a night owl. While there’s data supporting the pros and cons of each chronotype, science usually falls on the side of being a morning person. Among other things, research suggests better heart health and even better overall health, though many other variables are likely at play.
Regardless of what the science says, much of the world is built for morning people. So whether you have to get up early for work or school, or just wish it were easier to get out of bed in the morning, it’s fair to wonder if you can train yourself to be a morning person. Is this a trait you’re born with, or can it be cultivated over time? Doctors say it’s a little of both.
Meet the experts: Christopher Winter, M.D., a sleep medicine specialist, neurologist, and the author of The Sleep Solution: Why Your Sleep Is Broken and How to Fix It; Beth Malow, M.D., a neurologist and chief of the Division of Sleep Disorders at Vanderbilt Health; Aarti Grover, M.D., medical director of the Center for Sleep Medicine at Tufts Medical Center; David Cutler, M.D., family medicine physician at Providence Saint John’s Health Center in Santa Mon...