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(And yes, abiding by set bedtimes isnt just important for babies, children, and teens.)

Whats the most important aspect of sleep timing?

A person being woken up in the morning, reaching for the alarm clock

Dr. Dawson explains that circadian rhythms change throughout your lifetime.

Consistency is yet another one of the most important aspects around sleep-wake times.

This applies not only for promoting healthy sleep patterns, but also staving off illness and mortality.

A woman with blonde hair sleeps surrounded by alarm clocks

A sizable body of research demonstrates that theres merit to the rhyme.

So will evening types inevitably experience poorer markers of sleep and health outcomes?

There is significant stigma associated with being a night owl, says Dr. Dawson.

A woman reaches out of bed to press the snooze button on her alarm clock

However, night owls may stand to benefit from shifting back their bedtime if and when possible.

Is there such a thing as an ideal bedtime?

Nonetheless, compelling evidence demonstrates that sleeping and waking earlier can promote favorable outcomes for physical and mental health.

Woman in bed reaches across to her alarm clock

Stay consistent

Sleeping and waking at the same time every day will help normalize your circadian rhythms.

Its easier to stay awake than to force oneself to sleep, he explains.

Basically, this hack will allow you to bounce back to your baseline bedtime with greater ease.

A woman stretches out on a king size mattress

Better yet, he says that this hack is particularly effective for night owls.

Woman wakes up and stretches in front of the sunrise

A woman reads a book in bed before going to sleep