(NEXSTAR) — Daylight saving time will wrap up soon, leading to a change where clocks will be reset an hour back for around four and a half months.
The U.S. has a long-standing practice of changing time seasonally, and despite various initiatives at both state and federal levels, it doesn’t look like this biannual clock adjustment will disappear anytime soon. Still, there’s considerable public interest in making a change. A March survey by YouGov indicated that 65% of participants supported eliminating these clock changes.
Of those wanting to end the practice, 34% favored keeping daylight saving time (which runs from mid-March to early November except in two states) as permanent, whereas 22% preferred standard time to be the constant.
You might find yourself in the former camp or perhaps just look forward to the change in March. However, experts suggest that the upcoming months of standard time could be better for our health compared to the preceding months of daylight saving time.
Dr. Alaina Tierni, a clinical health psychologist at the Cleveland Clinic’s Sleep Disorders Center, indicated that “if you trust the science, a permanent standard time is ‘absolutely’ the best choice for our health.”
The reason mainly involves when we have sunlight. During daylight saving time, more light is available in the latter part of the day, while standard time offers more sunlight in the mornings.
“Getting exposure to light early in the day is, as we know, much more beneficial for your body’s internal clock than the light exposure from daylight saving time,” Tierni added.
When we turn the clocks back next month, sunrise will occur an hour earlier, shifting it from 7 a.m. to 6 a.m. In some regions, keeping daylight saving time year-round could push sunrise to as late as 9 a.m.
Morning sunlight is crucial for regulating melatonin, which influences your circadian rhythm, or internal clock. This can have broader implications for health factors like blood pressure, heart rate, and cortisol levels, Tierni noted.
Dr. Karin Johnson, co-president of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine (AASM), mentioned that improving sleep and circadian rhythms could further enhance well-being.
At a Senate hearing on daylight saving time earlier this year, she discussed how these rhythms have a significant impact on our lives, affecting everything from what we eat to children’s academic success and overall mental health.
“A well-functioning circadian rhythm helps us navigate our days,” Johnson explained.
She also highlighted studies connecting sleep and circadian disruptions to various issues, including mental health struggles and decreased performance in educational settings. There’s even some evidence suggesting a permanent switch to standard time could contribute to lower suicide rates.
Research from Stanford Medicine has suggested that abolishing daylight saving time entirely could lead to better health outcomes for Americans. Their findings indicate that switching year-round to standard time might decrease cases of obesity and strokes, while permanent daylight saving time could provide some benefits—about two-thirds of what permanent standard time offers.
Ultimately, whether you lean toward permanent daylight saving time or standard time, a study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences concluded that changing clocks twice a year is the least favorable of the three options.
Regardless, on November 2nd this year, clocks will fall back an hour.
