Dr. Meeta Singh is a practicing certified psychiatrist and a trained physician in the field of sleep medicine.
Congress has taken a step to correct federal policies that are causing serious health problems for the entire US population.
Unfortunately, this is a step in a completely wrong direction.
On Tuesday, the Senate unanimously passed a bill repealing the widely despised annual clock change, which occurs once in the spring and once in the fall.
The bill will make Daylight Saving Time (DST) permanent starting in 2023.
Don’t get me wrong – having a fixed national year-round time is a good thing.
But almost the entire scientific community is against the way they do it.
The truth is, we simply don’t know what the long-term health effects of permanent DST will be for Americans.
It will be a massive experiment for the whole society.
However, we have good reason to believe that permanent DST will make Americans sicker and more vulnerable.
Here’s what we know: Twice a year, the transitions between standard and daylight saving time are bad for our health.
The human body is governed by three basic clocks.
One internal is the biological clock, also known as the circadian clock. The internal time system is regulated in our brain and is highly dependent on light.
Congress has taken a step to correct federal policies that are causing serious health problems for the entire US population. Unfortunately, this is a step in a completely wrong direction. (Above) Employees of the Architect of the Capitol wind the Ohio Clock at the US Capitol on January 21, 2020.
Other clocks are external and artificial. This is the clock on the nightstand.
The third hour is solar time.
Ideally, all three hours should strike noon when the sun is directly overhead.
But when those clocks are off, even if only for a moment, people suffer.
Reported cases of heart attack, stroke, and other serious illnesses increase dramatically each year as the clocks reset in the spring.
The number of hospitalizations is increasing, the risk of mood disorders and car accidents is increasing.
This is due to the fact that the most powerful signal of our circadian rhythm – light – shifts dramatically.
The circadian rhythms respond to light in a predictable way, and when the artificial time changes, it causes the circadian rhythms to shift.
In addition, people who walk around tired are suddenly deprived of one extra hour of rest because of the alarm clock.
The quality of sleep is reduced.
Sleep is the most restorative activity a person can experience. When we don’t get enough sleep, our physical, mental and emotional health deteriorates.
We become less aware, less happy, and less stable.
In a society where sleep deprivation or chronic sleep deprivation is already a problem, the harm is exacerbated.
After all, people adapt to the changes of the times, but not in the same way.
Adjusting to DST is more difficult because DST is less well suited to human circadian physiology.
In fact, this discrepancy can last for months after the changeover to daylight saving time.
During summer time there is more darkness in the morning and more light in the evening.
Daily light in the early evening encourages us to stay up late and delay sleep.
Why shouldn’t the US Senate pass legislation making standard time the norm? This can lead to capitalism. (Top) Senator Marco Rubio’s tweet about the DST reform bill he sponsored
In a way, it turns us all into night owls, whether we like it or not.
We still have to meet the same needs in the morning (babysitting, school, work, etc.) but with less sleep.
And we are forced to get up in the dark to start our day, depriving ourselves of the bright sunlight that invigorates the mind and mood.
This chronic misalignment of our internal and artificial clocks leads to a condition known as social jet lag.
Social jet lag has been well studied, and the health damage is clear—increased risk of obesity, depression, and cardiovascular disease.
There may also be non-health related side effects of DST.
In 1973, President Richard Nixon suspended daylight saving/standard time during the oil crisis caused by the United States embargo from the Organization of the Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC).
Nixon’s policy was to reduce U.S. oil consumption during the winter months.
But during the temporary change between January and April, there was an increase in mortality among school-age children.
The suspicion is that children walking to school in the dark have become more prone to fatal accidents.
In addition, there is currently a major national effort to push back the start time of the school day.
Children and teens in the US suffer disproportionately from sleep deprivation, and delaying the start of school can help mitigate this by allowing them to get enough sleep.
National fixed daylight saving time will further worsen the situation for children by encouraging them to stay up late and causing them to wake up in the dark.
Finally, there is reason to believe that permanently changing daylight saving time would be unpopular.
In 2011, former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev stopped changing clocks and adopted a permanent “summer time”.
Current President Vladimir Putin reversed the change in 2014 as polls reportedly showed widespread discontent.
Russians living in the northern regions of the country had to endure longer and darker morning hours in winter.
We might expect a similar reaction from Americans living in the north and west of the US, where they already have less daylight due to earlier sunset times.
The American Academy of Sleep Medicine (AASM) officially states that a constant standard time is the best option.
The author, Dr. Mita Singh, practices in Detroit and is a consultant for the NFL, Major League Baseball, NHL, NBA, Olympics and college sports teams, as well as major organizations.
The AASM position statement also states that “the available evidence best supports the adoption of a year-round standard time that best aligns with human circadian biology and provides clear public health and safety benefits.”
The application has been approved by more than 20 medical, scientific, and community organizations, including the American College of Lung Medicine, the American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, the National Parents’ Committee, the National Safety Board, the Biological Rhythm Research Society, and the World Sleep Society. .
So why shouldn’t the US Senate pass legislation making standard time the norm?
This can lead to capitalism.
When people stay up late, they are more likely to go shopping, have dinner, and go to the movies.
There is a clear economic benefit to having the population more active in the evenings and mornings.
But then again, this could be a mistake.
Given the significant health risks associated with permanent DST, the US government could end up costing the country even more.
The sicker the population, the more public money will have to be spent on health care.
If one believes that a healthier population is the key to a stronger America, then constant standard time is probably the best choice.
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