Fall has arrived and it's almost time to change your clocks that don't adjust automatically. Two days after Halloween, most of the US will set time back an hour. Summer time ends on November 2nd and the official time changes at 2am.
Time shifts are notorious for disrupting sleep. diagrams and graphs. Some politicians insist on undo time changes and will forever remain in Daylight Saving Time or DST. If you too don't like how early it gets dark each day, just remember that brighter evenings will return in four months.
When does daylight saving time end?
Summer time in the US ends at 2 a.m. local time on Sunday, November 2. It returns at 2am local time on Sunday, March 8th. The end of Daylight Saving Time has the motto of “stepping back,” whereas in March we are “leaping forward.”
The United States is not alone in observing daylight saving time. Check it out list of other countries that use daylight saving time, as well as their start and end dates.
Daylight saving time compared to standard time
The official US time website shows where the boundaries of time zones are located.
The exact start dates for Daylight Saving Time and Standard Time vary a bit. Daylight saving time begins on the second Sunday in March and ends on the first Sunday in November with the return of standard time.
We spend about eight months of the year on daylight saving time. We can thank the Uniform Time Act of 1966 for bringing some order to the complex history of time changes in the United States.
“Inspired by transportation improvements, this legislation established standard time within existing time zones and established a permanent system of uniform daylight saving time, including dates and times for biannual transitions,” the Bureau of Transportation Statistics report said. history of time zones.
The country's time zones originated during the railroad boom of the late 1800s. Daylight saving time formally entered the chat in 1918, but its application was inconsistent until 1966. summer time in January 1974 under President Richard Nixon as a way to solve the energy crisis. It didn't go very well. Congress and President Gerald Ford restored standard time in October 1974.
If you really hate time changes, consider moving to Arizona (except for the Navajo Nation) or Hawaii. These states use standard time year-round and don't have to deal with physical and impact on mental health changes. Puerto Rico, Guam, the Virgin Islands, American Samoa and the Northern Mariana Islands also skip daylight saving time.
Read more: Why is NASA working on a lunar time zone?
Sleep experts are looking for a standard time all year round
Organizations such as National Sleep FoundationThe American Academy of Sleep Medicine and the Biological Rhythm Research Society have teamed up to call for permanent standard time, saying it is better for human biology.
“During the summer, there is a mismatch between the outside world and our internal clocks, which can lead to some negative health effects,” says Joseph Dzierzewski, senior vice president of research and scientific affairs at the National Sleep Foundation.
Dzierzewski cites mental health problems, an increase in cardiovascular disease and drowsy driving. He also highlights safety concerns for young children walking to school or sitting at bus stops in the dark. These safety concerns were the main reason there was no permanent daylight saving time in 1974.
Will we abandon these temporary changes forever?
Time changes are not popular. October 2024 YouGov poll (PDF link) among more than 1,100 American adults found that 63% would like to see the clock change eliminated. Only 17% wanted to keep the changes over time, and 20% were unsure.
Attempts to end the temporary changes failed to become law. Bipartisan Sunshine Protection Actwhich would have made daylight saving time permanent passed the Senate in 2022 but did not go any further. The bill's co-sponsors are still pushing for it.
“This is not just a nuisance—changing our clocks also has very real impacts on our economy, our health and our happiness,” said Sen. Edward Markey of Massachusetts, renewing his call for adoption of the bill in 2024.
While many people agree that time changes need to be eliminated, the divide between daylight saving time and standard time remains. Standard Time may have some display issues compared to Daylight Saving Time.
“Part of the problem is that people associate daylight saving time with summer. People love summer, right?” – said Dzerzhevsky. “But the fact is, if we had constant standard time, it would still be summer.”
President Donald Trump criticized the time change in 2024 True Social Post: “The GOP will make every effort to abolish Daylight Saving Time, which has small but strong support, but should not do so! Daylight saving time is inconvenient and very costly for our country.”
Bills and regulations at the state level have yet to have any real impact. Politicians remain divided on whether they want permanent daylight saving time or standard time. Dzierzhevsky hopes that constant standard time will win. “For the first time in several years, I see more legislation being passed at the state level to support permanent standard time as a solution,” he said.
If you want time changes to stop and want to advocate for daylight saving time or standard time, contact your state and national representatives and voice your opinion.
Set your body clock to daylight saving time.
Daylight saving time has changed, so now we need to figure it out how to deal with it. It's not just about the day the time changes.
“You'll be better able to cope with the effects of changing clocks if you have overall good sleep,” Dzierzewski said. He recommends exposure to bright light in the morning, physical activity during the day, eating regularly and practicing a relaxing sleep pattern in the evening.
Most Americans struggle to get the National Sleep Foundation's recommended 7 to 9 hours of sleep for most adults. A CNET Poll Revealed that more than half of US adults use some method to cope with sleep-related problems. Check out some expert tips for improvement. the quality of your sleep.
“If you have these healthy sleep patterns, you're probably more resistant to some of these changes,” Dzierzewski said. “If you have poor sleep to begin with, you'll probably feel it a little more.”
Establishing a better sleep pattern can take time. There are two things you can do in response to the time change. Dzerzhevsky suggests gradually adjusting your bedtime and wake-up time before changes. For example, you can change your schedule by 15 minutes a day and switch to daylight saving time. He also recommends getting a good dose of bright morning light on the day of the time change to help reset your internal body clock.
Think of daylight saving time as another form of awakening that can encourage you to evaluate your sleep patterns and quality and make positive changes. Start with these six simple habits. And don't forget to change your watch. Do this the night before and you won't have to worry about it later.
