Unless you’re a “short sleeper,” one of the less than one percent of the population that feels fully rested after less than six hours of sleep, you may want to take a nap today, and tomorrow, and every day this week, if you’re able and inclined. That’s because our clocks, internal and otherwise, lost an hour due to Daylight Saving Time which started at 3 a.m. today.
DST, the practice of setting our clocks ahead one hour as the warmer weather season approaches to maximize evening daylight at the expense of morning daylight, has had a roller-coaster ride of a history since first being suggested by Benjamin Franklin in 1784. In an effort to conserve fuel during World War I, Germany began observing DST in 1916. In the United States, it’s been an off and on again proposition, with varying degrees of success and popularity, since 1918. And folks are still torn when it comes to losing that hour, and understandably so, as we are a sleep deprived nation to begin with, and can ill afford to lose yet another hour.
Recent DST vents air these mixed feelings, but unsatisfied, I recently conducted my own very informal and completely non-scientific survey of “springing forward” by asking the opinions of colleagues within ear shot. Overwhelmingly everyone agreed that they enjoy the longer daylight, but miss that hour of sleep that has them dragging throughout the first week.
Yes, there’s more daylight to delight in, and the extra hour of daylight may help prevent pedestrian fatalities, but only if we’re not driving while sleepy to begin with.
Because beyond the loss of an hour of sleep, transitioning into DST may spark an uptick in traffic accidents, cause a spike in heart attacks, and disturb sleep patterns. Workplace accidents and injury severity may also increase, as a result. Ticking off our biological clock and circadian rhythm also negatively affects mental alertness, hormone levels and gastrointestinal functions.
SleepBetter.org created the “Lost-Hour Economic Index” to try and put a price tag on the resulting fatigue and sluggishness, and estimate that it will cost metro Atlanta about $7.5 million in injuries and lost productivity.
For some, the stuck in low gear feeling lasts all week. Getting to bed a little earlier, 15 minutes earlier each night of the week leading up to the change is supposed to help. If you didn’t do it already, try it today. According to the National Institutes of Health, adults need 7 to 8 hours of sleep, adolescents between 9 and 10, so schedule bedtime accordingly. Rescheduling dangerous tasks to another time is probably also a prudent move.
Although there’s nothing pending in Georgia, legislators in Tennessee are considering making DST permanent there, with no more “fall back,” meaning our neighbors to the north may lose that hour forever. I’d need to sleep on it before deciding, but maybe they’re onto something: lose some sleep once, and give it a rest for good, literally putting the DST issue to bed.
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