It’s a buzzword you expect to hear at business seminars: social jet lag. But it’s actually a well-researched phenomenon that could explain why you or your night owl friend often feel groggy during your daily routine. Unlike regular jet lag, social jet lag can also cause long-term damage to your health.
Our biological clock is ticking
Everyone has their own circadian rhythm, or internal body clock. This clock helps determine how our bodies function throughout the 24 hours of the day, including when and how long we want to sleep. People have a range of preferred sleep times, called sleep chronotypes. Early birds tend to wake up early and go to bed early, while night owls tend to go to bed late and get up late.
A person’s circadian rhythm and chronotype are often most influenced by natural day and night cycles and their genetics. But modern life is now full of things that make it harder for some of us to stick to our body clocks as often as we’d like, such as going to school and working during the workday. This mismatch is thought to cause social jet lag.
The term was first coined in a 2006 study by scientists Marc Wittmann, Jenny Dinich, Martha Merrow and Till Roenneberg. They define it as the difference between our preferred sleep schedule and our forced sleep schedule during the week. For example, a night owl may wake up earlier during the school/work week and only catch up on the amount and type of sleep they prefer on the weekends. In contrast, early birds are more likely to get the same amount and hours of sleep throughout the week. Estimates vary, but as many as two-thirds of the working/study population in industrialized countries may experience Social jet lag means losing at least an hour of sleep on weekdays.
Numerous studies have found that severe disruptions to circadian rhythms, such as having to work regular night shifts, can harm our long-term health. So-called shift workers are more likely to experience sleep disorder, heart diseaseand diabetes. But over time, even the more subtle changes caused by social jet lag can seem exhausting.
The dangers of social jet lag
A 2020 study established For example, night shift workers have higher levels of social jet lag than day shift workers, and both night shift work and social jet lag are associated with greater obesity risk. A 2020 study found a similar pattern among schoolchildren Discover Night owls are more likely to experience social jet lag, as well as higher rates of obesity and other metabolic changes. Research has also found that social jet lag is related to type 2 diabetes, Cardiovascular diseasesand frustrated.
Interestingly, and paradoxically, social jet lag may be a sign of better health for some groups of people. A 2023 study of people over 60 established High social jet lag was associated with poorer glycemic and blood pressure control in the working population but with better glycemic and blood pressure control in the retired population. One possible explanation for this paradox is that social jet lag in retirees could represent an intentionally more active social life, which is inherently healthy compared to a forced, more stressful drudgery.
Beyond retirees, however, social jet lag appears to be a subtle but serious public health issue Experts believe that given the prevalence of this phenomenon, it deserves major policy measures to address it. Scientists such as chronobiologist Till Roenneberg, one of the originators of the phrase, have highlight More flexible working hours, later school starts, and the end of daylight saving time are some possible ways to reduce social jet lag. You don’t have to be a night owl to see how these changes have made many people less stressed and happier.
more: Things you don’t know about sleep
