Time change can have adverse impacts, say experts

By Al Beeber - Lethbridge Herald on November 2, 2024.

Herald photo by Al Beeber The iconic post office clock is seen Friday. With Mountain Standard Time returning at 2 a.m. on Sunday, residents will need to turn their clocks back one hour.

LETHBRIDGE HERALDabeeber@lethbridgeherald.com

It’s that time of year again – time to turn back the clocks.

Daylight Saving Time officially comes to an end at 2 a.m. tomorrow so in theory a person could get in an extra hour of sleep tonight.

With the change, mornings will be lighter earlier for a period of time while sunset will also come earlier.

While the potential for more sleep may be considered by some a reason to celebrate, experts say the change in time can have adverse effects.

According to the Bloomberg School of Public Health at John Hopkins University in the U.S. says the time change can have long-term negative consequences for bodies and minds with more daylight hours exacerbating mood disorders, anxiety, substance abuse and depression.

But the autumn change can have impacts, as well with its potential to disrupt sleep.

According to a story on weathernetwork.com by Lisa Kramer of the University of Toronto, deviations from normal sleep habits can lead to the same symptoms caused by jet lag including anxiety, judgment errors and reduced attention span.

Heart attacks and car accidents have also been shown to increase due to the time change.

And workplace accidents tend to be both greater in terms of frequency and severity after the time changes. This means, says Kramer, “lost wages, higher worker’s compensation costs, higher medical costs, more training costs for replacement workers and reduced productivity overall. On balance, the time changes are expensive for both business and government.”

An Alberta referendum in 2021 showed a narrow majority of Albertans – 50.2 per cent – supported the continuation of the annual time change in this province. This province is among nine and two territories in Canada which observe DST.

DST was first adopted in the world by Port Arthur, Ont. – now part of Thunder Bay – back in 1908. Over the decades it has been tried, and sometimes dropped, by countries around the world, Canada being among the few which still implement the practice in most jurisdictions.

A doctor of clinical psychology and professor at Dalhousie University, Simon Sherry, told The Herald in the spring that “time transitions can be very influential, from accidents to suicides, it can be a matter of life and death for some. And it’s not surprising when you subject 1.6 billion people to these types of transitions, and it sometimes goes wrong.”

According to Sherry, 70 countries around the world use DST.

For those concerned about the impact of the change, here are some tips:

* Keep your sleeping pattern regular before and after the clocks change. It’s particularly important to keep the time you wake up in the morning regular. This is because the body releases cortisol in the morning to make you more alert. Throughout the day you will become increasingly tired as cortisol levels decrease and this will limit the time change’s impact on your sleep.

* Gradually transition your body to the new time by changing your sleep schedule slowly over a week or so. Changing your bedtime 10-15 min earlier or later each day helps your body to gently adjust to the new schedule and eases the jet lag.

* Get some morning sunlight. Morning light helps your body adjust quicker and synchronizes your body clock faster – whereas evening light delays your clock. Morning light will also increase your mood and alertness during the day and helps you sleep better at night.

* Avoid bright light in the evening. This includes blue light from mobile phones, tablets, and other electronics. Blue light can delay the release of the sleep hormone melatonin, and reset the internal clock to an even later schedule. A dark environment is best at bedtime.

* Keep your eating pattern regular. Other environmental cues, such as food, can also synchronize your body clock. Research shows light exposure and food at the correct time, can help your master and peripheral clocks shift at the same speed. Keep mealtimes consistent and avoid late-night meals.

The U.S. based Sleep Foundation also suggests balancing diets with fruits and vegetables has been associated with improved sleep. And it recommends to avoid disruptions in sleep people keep an eye on caffeine in beverages, limit their consumption of spicy and heavy foods in the evening and eat their last meal of the day several hours before going to bed.

For public service workers in Alberta who may hope to cash in on an extra hour of pay, that won’t be the case Saturday night. According to a provincial directive, “although employees working a shift through 2 a.m. on that morning will be working one hour more than their normal shift, no adjustment in pay shall be effected for this period. Overtime compensation shall apply when an employee, on the morning of that day, works in excess of 9 hours in the case of a 40 hour a week requirement, or 8 3/4 hours in the case of a 38 3/4 hour a week requirement.”