On Sunday, the United States will once again observe its biannual custom of reverting from daylight saving time to regular time for the winter.
At first, there is a bonus. If you go to bed on Saturday night and get up on Sunday morning at your usual timings, you will gain an extra hour of sleep.
After the change, however, mornings will become brighter and nights will go darker earlier. (Except for Arizona and Hawaii, which do not observe seasonal time changes.)
This seasonal transition can be socially challenging, according to Dr. Akinbolaji Akingbola, a sleep specialist at the University of Minnesota Medical Center. However, it is beneficial for our bodies.
“Standard time is simply more convenient,” Akingbola told Insider. “Because there is more sunlight in the morning, waking up is easier. As it becomes darker in the evening, it becomes easier for us to fall asleep.”
Akingbola stated that as our clocks spring forward in the spring, our focus, reaction times, and mood “all suffer.” Accidents, strokes, and heart attacks also increase during daylight saving time, according to studies. According to recent study, it can take a full week for night owls to recover from the jet-lagged feeling of switching clocks.
The world’s sleep experts, including Akingbola, have pleaded for years to permanently eliminate daylight saving time and implement year-round standard time.
In a position statement backed by cardiologists, dentists, the National Safety Council, and others, the American Academy of Sleep Medicine argues for the permanent adoption of standard time, which, according to the AASM, “aligns best with human circadian biology and provides distinct benefits for public health and safety.”
Curiously, there is already a bill in Congress that would achieve the exact opposite by making daylight-saving time permanent.
There is no rationale for observing daylight-saving time.
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The initial intent of daylight saving time was to conserve energy by keeping the sun out longer in the day, however this theory was never supported by substantial evidence.
Republicans and Democrats in the US Senate unanimously passed the “Sunshine Protection Act” immediately following the start of Daylight Saving Time last spring. If their plan is ultimately approved by the House and signed by the President, it would make daylight-saving time permanent in 2023, meaning that this could be our last “fall back” to standard time.
This possibility may appeal to business owners. More evening illumination could increase sales.
However, physicians and health experts favor a permanent change in the opposite direction, retaining winter’s usual time.
Akingbola added of the Senate’s Sunshine Protection Act, “When we saw it, it was kind of a ‘oopsie-daisies.’” “It’s been rather obvious that standard time is the preferable option”
According to the Sleep Research Society, daylight saving time might delay the body’s normal production of melatonin, making it more difficult to fall asleep. Also dysregulated by the shift is the stress hormone cortisol, which can alter metabolism and impact inflammation.
Regardless of your time zone, Akingbola believes you can take steps to improve your sleep and feel more alert at work or school. Opening the shades in the morning to allow in the sunlight, lowering the temperature before night, and locating a peaceful resting space can all be helpful.
The doctor’s primary recommendation for better sleep, though, boils down to one thing.
“Unfortunately, I only have the most boring piece of advice in the world: you need a consistent sleep pattern,” he remarked.
A more biologically-aligned clock could help us think more clearly, rid our brains of more pollutants, and increase our mood and problem-solving abilities – all of which are advantages of adequate sleep.