Most of us look forward to springtime. The flowers are blooming. The temperature (if we actually have an actual Spring season! And, obviously, you west coast folks have Spring all year in some places, so this part isn’t directed at you!) is just perfect. Not too hot. Not too cold. What’s not to love about Spring?
Here’s one! Losing an hour of sleep when those clocks spring forward! Ah, daylight savings time (DST) is here! I’m posting early this week in the hope that this will benefit my readers this weekend!
DST refers to the adjusting of our clocks by an hour. In 1784, Ben Franklin apparently analyzed the cost of candle consumption during dark evenings. But it wasn’t until 1915 or 1916, when apparently, Great Britain started this mess. They wanted to conserve costs during the war. It is said, they followed the lead of Germany and Austria, but really, does it matter who did this to us?
If come Monday, you are feeling a little fuzzy and having a difficult time concentrating, it is highly likely you will not be alone.
While we might feel like an inconsequential loss of just one hour of sleep is not big deal. It kinda is a big deal! According to the National Institute of Health, it can have a cumulative effect for an extended period of time.
Circadian clocks regulate metabolism in many body systems and organs including your heart! Circadian misalignment can screw up your blood pressure, decrease your heart rate while awake and increase the heart rate when you are sleep. (Which can mess up your sleep!) And lack of sleep can wreak havoc on your overall health.
Every single cell in your body keeps track of time and changes in our daily patterns can increase stress in our brains. This can result in disorientation and memory loss. (As if aging wasn’t already doing a number on us!)
Changing the clocks disrupts our body’s clock. It screws with that twenty-four clock known as the circadian rhythm. Research has shown that our circadian rhythms don’t adjust so easily. It’s real easy to change the clocks in our homes and cars, but that body clock is a whole other story.
From the moment you wake up, the chemical Adenosine starts to build up. The more it builds up, the sleepier you become. When you are sleep, the brain takes away or removes all of that Adenosine. So, after a good night of sleep, you wake up alert.
We all have a 24-hour clock or a circadian rhythm. It’s controlled by a part of your brain with a fancy name that you probably don’t care about. But it controls our sleep cycle rising and peaking just as we wake up. In the evening, the circadian rhythm drives the signal of alertness down. It uses the hormone melatonin to circulate through the brain and the body to inform the body that it’s nighttime and time to lay the hell down.
Daylight, received through the retina in our eyes, signals the brain to shut off the release of melatonin. Ever wonder why you are fading in your office and step outside and feel more alert? The issue is the lighting. The reverse can be true when you have a lot of bright lights on in the evening at home or are staring as these bright screens on TVs and computers for hours on end. Your brain is actually being tricked because it’s not getting the right signals of darkness that trigger that melatonin release!
We are dark deprived and much of it is self-inflicted by our own devices. (Actual Devices!) We need the darkness to trigger the release of Melatonin. (On the topic of Melatonin. Warning! Be careful with those Melatonin supplements. If you take too much, or more than you need, your brain and your body might actually become less receptive and may even stop producing its own!)
As we age, there can be benefits in supplementing because as we age, we often produce less of it. But, in the US the FDA doesn’t regulate these supplements, so the amount of Melatonin in the supplements can vary greatly from brand to brand. Tests have shown that often, there is much more or less than what is stated on the bottle!
In any event, DST can throw things all out of whack. For some the change can have some serious consequences. Did you know there are multiple studies that have shown there is an increase in heart attacks at the start of DST in Spring?
I recently completed a Sleep Master Class taught by Neuroscience Professor Matthew Walker. In this class he stated that there is a 24% increase in heart attacks when we lose that hour of sleep. When we gain it back in the Fall, there are 21% less heart attacks. Strokes rates are also higher in the first two days of those DST time changes.
We are designed to be awake during the day and sleep at night. As a result, night shift workers have a higher risk of heart disease, diabetes, anxiety, and depression. Overall, there is an actual association with a shorter life span with compromised immune systems in night shift workers. Day time sleep just isn’t as good as it goes against your biological clock.
The WHO (World Health Organization) recently classified any form of night shift work as a probable carcinogen based on a disruption of circadian rhythms. You need sleep and at the right time and losing an hour of sleep can be a big deal. Your sleep health is your immune health.
It important to note, that as we age, our rhythms can shift. This explains why older adults are up so early! I always thought it was because they had less time left and wanted more hours in a day, but there is actually science behind it! See that. You thought it was about the Early Bird Specials. (Start the day earlier and get to that discount 5pm dinner!). Nope, the rhythm has actually changed over the years.
The bottom line is that losing an hour of sleep can really have a negative effect on our health. The European Union might be changing their clocks for the last time. It may or may not happen this year. Here in the US, a group of Senators (bipartisan, I might add! Glad they can agree about something!) are aiming to end DST here at home. I’m not sure the bill appropriately named the Sunshine Protection Act, will ever see the “light of day!” Get it. Light? It’s just not that simple and many states and countries do not agree.
In the grand scheme it might not appear to be a big deal. But it most certainly is. Obviously, getting to the other side of Covid is the priority.
So, what can you do? Start by reading my prior post on sleep! (Link below)
Go to bed earlier this week! Starting with tonight!!!
DISCONNECT! Turn off all devices and maybe just listen to something relaxing.
Turn off the lights! (In my Teddy Pendergrass voice. I just can’t help saying that!)
“Turn’em off!”
And it may seem unrelated, but eat better, exercise, eliminate as much stress as possible, meditate and take better care of yourself! By doing these things, you can at the very least offset some of the damage that DST does to us every Spring!
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-03-11/will-daylight-saving-time-ever-end
https://www.aan.com/PressRoom/Home/PressRelease/1440
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6469828/