It’s that time of year again when clocks are set back and our sleep patterns are disrupted. Daylight saving is the practice of moving clocks one hour ahead in the spring and falling back one hour in the autumn. This change in sleep affects many people, so the question is, is it necessary? Based on the disruptions in daily living and the negative impact on the quality of life for workers and students, daylight saving time is completely needless.
The origin of daylight saving is often confused with agriculture. However, farming played no role in the time change. Daylight saving time was first introduced as a bill in 1918, near the end of World War I as a means for cutting costs but it was repealed after seven months. Then during World War II, President Franklin Roosevelt revived daylight saving time and applied it towards saving money by conserving fuel costs. With both wars concluded, there remains no basis for continuing this practice. The effects of the switch in time can spark adverse complications in one’s everyday life.
A 2015 study by the Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine validated that during school days following the switch, students were sleepier, had slower reaction times, and were less attentive. The shift in students’ sleep patterns brought out by the time switch caused them to be out of sync during school hours. Students already managing sports and schoolwork face additional challenges as sleep is one of the most crucial human health components. Americans, as recently as a 2021 AP/NORC survey, are now seeking to overturn time changes. 75% of the U.S. population polled wished to end the changing of their clocks. This statistic illustrates the way society is shifting away from daylight saving. If America no longer requires the switch for a war effort, there remains no rationale for the observance of this outdated custom.
The practice of daylight saving that originated from war efforts still perseveres in the present day regardless of the multitude of reasons displaying the consequential effects it has mentally and physically on the general public. The aftereffects of daylight saving as evidenced in the above study and survey demonstrate the damaging results of this practice. With both world wars concluded it only makes sense to end the seasonal change in clocks. Times are changing, but our clocks should not be.
