When you go to bed on Saturday, March 7, don’t forget to set your clocks ahead one hour to align with the beginning of Daylight Saving Time at 2 a.m. Sunday morning.
While no one enjoys losing an hour of sleep, the benefit is gaining an extra hour of daylight beginning Sunday evening.
Some people are more affected by the time change than others and notice changes in their sleep, mood and appetite.
“Daylight Saving Time brings an extra hour of darkness in the morning, which can decrease your serotonin, or mood-boosting hormone, leaving you feeling groggy or grumpy,” said Cynthia Spilker, MD, sleep specialist at Liberty Hospital’s Pulmonary and Sleep Clinic.
“Likewise, later hours of sunlight in the evening can delay your body’s production of melatonin, or the hormone that helps you fall asleep, leaving you feeling fatigued or unfocused during the day.”
The good news, she asserts, is that people can help their bodies prepare for the sudden time change.
First, Dr. Spilker suggests increasing your exposure to sunlight every morning for a week after the time change. An extra 15 minutes of sunlight at the beginning of each day can help maintain your circadian rhythm.
She also suggests curbing alcohol and caffeine intake during that week because they have been shown to disrupt sleep.
“Your internal clock will continue to run behind for a few days, so give it some time to adjust and know that experiencing some disruption to your natural sleep pattern is normal,” Dr. Spilker said. She explains it can take up to a week for the body’s clock to reset to the new time.
For those who wish to get a head start, Dr. Spilker suggests going to bed 15 minutes earlier each night, beginning a few days before the time change.
“Or, like me, you can begin Daylight Saving Time on the right foot by going to bed an hour early on Saturday.”
Some experts suggest doing away with Daylight Saving Time. Among those, the American Academy of Sleep Medicine suggests that Standard time aligns more closely with our body’s natural rhythms, which regulate sleep-wake cycles.