It is that time of year again. Not just the season of pumpkin pie and Halloween, but also the time of year to set the clocks back an hour and observe daylight saving time. The U.S. has been officially observing daylight saving time since 1918 as a way of conserving energy and fuel, much of which had been used during World War I.
The extra hour of sleep in the fall is a pleasure and the lost hour in the spring an annoyance, but there is more than just the hassle of adjusting alarm clocks that shows how daylight saving time is not suitable for the modern day. The movement to abolish the practice has grown, as around 63% of Americans support getting rid of daylight saving time.
The key point against keeping daylight saving time is that it disrupts people’s natural circadian rhythms, or the body’s internal clock of when to eat, sleep and conserve energy, which is largely based on light. Before electricity, most humans were woken up by the rising sun and went to bed when it set. Most animals active in the daytime follow a similar rhythm.
Because of daylight saving time, we throw off these natural clocks by misaligning our bodies from the sun. A study from the National Library of Medicine database describes three separate clocks; the body, social and sun. The body clock is the circadian rhythm, which is dictated by the sun. Before the modern day, the social clock, or time set by society, was in tune with the others. With daylight saving time, they can all be thrown out of sync with each other.
This offset can cause a number of health issues, the most obvious being sleep issues, as the body must adjust to more daylight in the evening. Studies have shown that the difference in body and sun clock can also increase the chance of heart attacks. Between 1996 and 2017, car crashes also rose 6% around the time change in March.
Although most people adjust to daylight saving time within a week of the time change, some of these symptoms can become chronic.
Along with the health risks, both short and long term, daylight saving time ends up consuming more energy than standard time. The idea was created by Benjamin Franklin as a way to save fuel for candles. However, in the modern world lighting accounts for a much smaller portion of our energy usage than it did in the 1780’s.
While the impact from lighting may be less, other devices use even more electricity during daylight saving time, including air conditioning. Air conditioning, which is more prevalent during daylight saving time, accounts for roughly 19% of energy consumption in homes, according to the Energy Information Administration.
While most think of daylight saving time being standard across the country, two states do not observe it; Hawaii and Arizona (with the exception of the Navajo Nation) thanks to a loophole in a federal law requiring the observation of daylight saving time. While most health experts support repealing this and being on standard time year round, there has been a push to mandate the opposite.
Around 30 states have considered bills that establish permanent daylight saving time, claiming it promotes safety and more time to be active and productive. However, like many issues, the state legislatures do not listen to the will of the general population.
By throwing off people’s circadian rhythms and consuming more energy through heating and cooling, daylight saving time has no place in the modern era. Although it made sense in the early days of the country, it no longer makes sense to keep around, much less mandate on a national level.
Ethan Herx is a sophomore studying photojournalism at Ohio University. Please note that the views and opinions of the columnists do not reflect those of The Post. Want to share your thoughts? Let Ethan know by emailing or tweeting them at eh481422@ohio.edu or @ethanherx.
