Changing the clocks and losing an hour hurts! Literally.
Daylight saving time makes our internal clock go haywire, and it all has to do with sleep.
It may seem nice to gain an extra hour of daylight in the afternoon and evening, but our body’s 24 hour sleep cycle is healthiest when lined up with daylight: awake when it’s light, asleep when it’s dark. Daylight saving time takes away the alerting effect of early morning sunshine so our 24 hour sleep clock gets a delayed start. Then to compound things, evening darkness is delayed so our “getting drowsy / getting ready for sleep” hormones are late, too. That results in us being groggy in the morning and awake at bedtime.
This circadian rhythm is critical to our overall health. In fact, the health detriment of daylight saving time is so well documented that the American Academy of Sleep Medicine supports abolishing daylight saving time altogether in favor of standard time year-round.
Negative health effects directly associated with DST sleep problems include:
-decreases in cardiovascular health
-increases in diabetes and obesity
-poorer mental health
-lower cognitive performance
-an increase in the risk of motor vehicle accidents
These consequences are not unavoidable. Here are some steps to lessen the effects:
Increase your sleep health:
-Leading up to and following the changeover, get more sleep. You’ll be less affected if you’re not already behind.
-Improve your sleep environment: make it cool, calm and dark. Our body is programmed to sleep better that way.
-Foster good sleep hygiene: have a nighttime routine to wind down before bed so your body expects sleep; stop using electronics to reduce light exposure; only use your bed for sleep (not for reading or watching TV) to more strongly associate bed with sleep.
Help your circadian rhythm adjust:
-During the week prior to the DST change, shift your bedtime and wake up earlier by 10 minutes every day. Your body will be less shocked when the time actually changes.
-Plan to go to bed timely Sunday evening. Even if you feel like you adjusted well, a good night's rest to start the week will further minimize problems.
-Get more bright light in your eyes early in the morning (outdoor sunlight is best). This really helps adjust your internal sleep schedule.
-Decrease all light exposure in the evening and further decrease it in the hour prior to bed. This communicates to your body that sleep is coming. It further adjusts your internal sleep schedule.
-Set your clocks ahead Saturday evening instead and go to sleep as if that’s the real time. Again, more setting expectations.
-On Sunday, get outside for some early morning sunlight exposure asap. This helps reinforce the new circadian rhythm you’ve been working to establish leading up to the changeover.
Good luck! By leveraging knowledge, planning and incremental changes, the next two weeks can be a benefit to your health instead of a detriment.