Great Debate Awakens On Health Benefits Of Nixing Daylight Savings
Most sleep and health experts agree that sticking with one time year round would be beneficial (though some scientists warn about a lack of research.) But which time — the one we have in winter or in summer? That's where disagreement flares.
The Washington Post:
Permanent Standard Time Is Better Than Daylight Saving, Sleep Experts Say
Sleep experts widely agree with the Senate that the country should abandon its twice-yearly seasonal time changes. But they disagree on one key point: which time system should be permanent. Unlike the Senate, many sleep experts believe the country should adopt year-round standard time. After the Senate voted unanimously and with little discussion Tuesday to make daylight saving time permanent, the American Academy of Sleep Medicine issued a statement cautioning that the move overlooks potential health risks associated with that time system. (The legislation, which would take effect next year, must get through the House and be signed by President Biden to become law.) (Chiu, 3/16)
The Boston Globe:
Health Experts Say Making Daylight Saving Time Permanent Is A Terrible Idea. Permanent Standard Time, On The Other Hand ...
War is raging in Ukraine. The coronavirus looks like it’s making a comeback overseas. Yet the Senate this week gave winter-weary Americans something different to fight about: the prospect of making daylight saving time permanent. The Senate’s unanimous passage of legislation Wednesday to do just that sparked intense reactions, from sun-starved Northeasterners thrilled over a potential reprieve from 4:30 p.m. winter sunsets to exasperated voters wondering why Congress can’t manage to work on more pressing matters. “It’s about time. No pun intended,” Ari Silverman responded in a survey of Globe readers.“There is some kind of prejudice against us morning people,” quipped Lillian Reynolds. (Tziperman Lotan and Fatima, 3/16)
WFTS Tampa Bay:
Sleep Experts Say Permanent Daylight Saving Has Health Risks
The American Academy of Sleep Medicine believes permanent standard time, rather than year-round daylight saving time is the better option. “When you have standard time, you’re exposing your body to its natural rhythm, which means light is predominantly exposed during the day and then towards the evening that’s when you want to decrease your light exposure. So, that your body starts going back into that rhythm,” said Dr. Jocelyn Cheng with the American Academy of Sleep Medicine. (Petit, 3/16)
Salon:
Would Permanent Daylight Saving Time Actually Improve Our Sleep? Here's What Experts Say
What difference does moving the time one hour forward or back really make? Apparently, a lot, as legislators are once again trying to put a permanent end to biannual clock-changing by making daylight saving time permanent. The issue of daylight saving time has been at the forefront of public discussion in the past few years, with the possibility of change on the horizon in 2020 and 2021. Previously, there was even a trial period of year-round daylight saving between January 1974 to April 1975 to conserve energy (though the change didn't last). (Karlis, 3/16)
The New York Times:
Why Scientists Don’t Want To Make Daylight Saving Time Permanent
The claim that darker mornings and brighter evenings would be a boon for public health has not been well studied, in part because it’s near impossible to conduct national experiments on the topic. And in fact, many related studies are limited and sometimes contradictory. ... In one 2017 study from Denmark, scientists analyzed a psychiatric database of more than 185,000 people from 1995 to 2012. They found that the fall transition to standard time was associated with an 11 percent increase in depressive episodes, an effect that took 10 weeks to dissipate. The spring switch, by contrast, had no similar effect. (Nierenberg, 3/15)
And here's what happened when the U.S. tried it in 1974 —
Washingtonian:
The US Tried Permanent Daylight Saving Time In The '70s. People Hated It
The sun rose at 8:27 AM on January 7, 1974. Children in the Washington area had left for school in the dark that morning, thanks to a new national experiment during a wrenching energy crisis: most of the US went to year-round daylight saving time beginning on January 6. “It was jet black” outside when her daughter was supposed to leave for school, Florence Bauer of Springfield told the Washington Post. “Some of the children took flashlights with them.” (Beaujon, 3/15)
