Tick tock, tick tock, time to change your clock, or maybe not!

Springing forward into Daylight Saving Time happens on the second Sunday of March. This year it falls on March 12. Most Americans in the United States will wake up to find that the time is one hour later than it was just a day ago.

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Of the top industrialized nations, Japan, India and China don’t do the clock dance of gaining an hour in the fall, only to lose it in the Spring.

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To make matters more interesting…

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Which US States and Territories are Not Changing Their Clocks?

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The only areas of the United States that don’t have Daylight Saving Time are Hawaii and most of Arizona,… what?

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You see the Navajo Nation, a Native American territory in the north-east of the state, which also crosses over into New Mexico and Utah,?does make the twice a year time shift. For them it makes more sense for doing interstate business.

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Look at Indiana, where the state is divided into two time zones, talk about confusion!

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In addition, Puerto Rico, the US Virgin Islands, Northern Mariana Islands, Guam, and American Samoa don’t have any reason to play with their clocks, as well as other tropical islands.

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Since the whole reason for doing this clock dance is to give us all more sunlight/daylight in the first place, those islands don’t care about this because they are located close to the Equator where sunlight abounds year round.

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Moving Forward One Hour in the Spring May Have Medical Consequences

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The effects go beyond simple inconvenience. Researchers are discovering that “springing ahead” each March is connected with serious negative health effects, including an uptick in heart attacks and teen sleep deprivation.

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In contrast, the fall transition back to standard time is not associated with these health effects.

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Beth Ann Malow, studied the pros and cons of these twice yearly rituals for more than five years as a Professor of Neurology and Pediatrics and the Director of Vanderbilt University Medical Center’s Sleep Division.

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Professor Malow says that, “It’s become clear to me and many of my colleagues that the transition to daylight saving time each spring affects health immediately after the clock change and also for the nearly eight months that Americans remain on daylight saving time.”

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?Looking a little deeper…

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Sleep Deprivation and “Circadian Misalignment”

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Circadian misalignment refers to a mismatch in timing between our biological rhythms and the outside world. In other words, the timing of daily work, school or sleep routines is based on the clock, rather than on the sun’s rise and set.

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However, the two time shifts – jolting as they may be – are not equal.

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?Standard time most closely approximates natural light, with the sun directly overhead at or near noon. In contrast, during daylight saving time from March until November, the clock change resulting from daylight saving time causes natural light to be present one hour later in the morning and one hour later in the evening according to clock time.

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Morning light is essential for helping to set the body’s natural rhythms:

It wakes us up and improves alertness. Morning light boosts are mood, a good way to start the day.

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What is Cortisol and How Does this Hormone Effect Our Response to Light?

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Although the exact reasons why light activates us and benefits our mood are not yet known, this may be due to increasing levels of cortisol, a hormone that modulates the stress response or the effect of light on the amygdala, a part of the brain that deals with our emotions

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School age children may suffer with sleep deprivation because of the timing of classes, sports activities and other social events.

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For instance, children start their school day around 8 AM or earlier. This means that during daylight saving time, many young people get up and travel to school in pitch darkness. This just doesn’t make a whole lot of sense.

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The body of evidence makes a good case for adopting permanent standard time nationwide, as Professor Beth Ann Malow testified at a March 2022 Congressional hearing. The Senate has voted to make Standard Time in effect for the whole year. But guess what…

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The House of Representatives has not signed on the dotted line as of now.

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The American Medical Association recently called for permanent Standard Time throughout the year.

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In late 2022, Mexico adopted permanent Standard Time, citing health benefits, productivity and energy as well.

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There is one other issue that should be a part of this discussion…

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The “Western Edge” Effect

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Geography can also make a difference in how daylight saving time affects people. One study showed that people living on the western edge of a time zone, who get light later in the morning and later in the evening, got less sleep than their counterparts on the eastern edge of a time zone.

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I, personally saw this situation when visiting northern Alberta Canada when the sun was still shining at ten in the evening. People were moving around as if it were the middle of the day.

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In addition, the above study found that western-edge residents had higher rates of obesity, diabetes, heart disease and breast cancer, as well as lower per capita income. Not to mention higher health costs.

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?Other research has found that other types of cancer are higher on the western edge of time zones.

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So, if you are planning to relocate to a different state or country, keep these issues in mind when selecting your new home.

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Stay safe and be well until we meet again.