Daylight Saving Time 2024 Tips To Protect Your Health

Then end of daylight saving time 2024 is around the corner, and we’re about to “fall back.”

Being on a new schedule can be jarring to your body. The clocks may be changing by just an hour, but it can still have a big impact on your day — and your health.

That’s because the change causes a phase shift of our circadian rhythm, the body’s internal clock, and exacerbates the chronic sleep deficiency Americans already experience, Dr. Carol Ash said on TODAY.

While the effects are particularly evident in the spring — when people face a greater risk of heart attack and stroke in the days after losing one hour of sleep — gaining an extra hour in November has also been linked to sleep loss, as well as mood changes, according to the Sleep Foundation. There are also more car accidents following both time changes.

To help make the adjustment a little easier, experts recommend going to bed a bit later in the days leading up to the change to prepare and trying to take in more sunshine when you’re awake.

However you feel about the clocks changing, it helps to know a little more about why we do this every year — and why some sleep experts are calling for the practice to end.

When is daylight saving time in 2024?

Daylight saving time 2024 starts on March 10, 2024, when the clocks skip from 2:00 a.m. to 3 a.m. Daylight saving time 2024 lasts until Nov. 3, 2024, when clocks go from 2:00 a.m. back to 1 a.m.

Daylight saving time is an annual practice affecting most but not all Americans. It starts every year on the second Sunday in March and ends every year on the first Sunday in November, when we return to standard time.

How does daylight saving time work?

Daylight saving time works by moving clocks one hour ahead in order to have more sunlit hours in the evening during the warmest-weather months, according to the National Institute of Standards and Technology.

This allows us to maximize the amount of sunlight we get while we’re awake. The effect is more noticeable the farther you are from the equator, meaning northern states will feel it more than southern states.

Contrary to popular belief, daylight saving was not introduced to help farmers get some extra sun. Instead, it was put in practice with the Standard Time Act of 1918 during World War I as a way to conserve energy, but the actual effects have been minimal at best, the Scientific American reported.

How long does daylight saving time last?

Daylight saving time lasts about eight months, from the second Sunday in March to the first Sunday in November.

Daylight saving time 2024 will last from March 10, 2024, to Nov. 3, 2024.

Which states don’t observe daylight saving time?

According to the U.S. Department of Transportation, the following U.S. states and territories do not observe daylight saving time:

• Hawaii
• Most of Arizona
• Puerto Rico
• American Samoa
• Guam
• The Virgin Islands
• Northern Mariana Islands

What happens if daylight saving time is permanent?

If daylight saving time was to be made permanent, there would be no changing of clocks twice a year. In addition to eliminating the practical hassle, this could have health benefits for many people.

Although it might seem like gaining or losing a single hour of sleep shouldn’t make much of a difference, it absolutely does. Studies have also shown an increase in heart attacks, car crashes and other ill health effects, particularly when clocks spring forward.

Some sleep health experts argue that permanent standard time would be preferable to permanent daylight saving time. Ash said we lose about 30 minutes of sleep a night during daylight saving time from March to November due to our bodies being misaligned with the sun.

The American Academy of Sleep Medicine is “in favor of a national, fixed, year-round time,” the organization’s website says. The best evidence we have now suggests that year-round standard time (rather than daylight saving time) “aligns best with human circadian biology and provides distinct benefits for public health and safety.”

We’ve made daylight saving time permanent before: In January 1974, President Richard Nixon signed the Emergency Daylight Saving Time Energy Conservation Act into law, which eliminated clock-changing for 16 months. While the move (designed as a two-year experiment) was initially quite popular, public opinion turned later in the year. Lawmakers ended the experiment early and standard time was reintroduced in October 1974.

More recently, the Sunshine Protection Act, which would make daylight saving time last all year, passed unanimously in the Senate in 2022 but failed to pass in the House of Representatives, so it wasn’t signed into law. The bill was introduced again in 2023 but has since stalled.

Tips to reduce health effects of daylight saving time

You can reduce the negative health effects of daylight saving time ending by making some adjustments to your routine.

Before the time change:

• Reconsider your bed and wake-up times: Try going to bed and waking up later in the days before the change to get used to the one-hour shift. The night before, stay up an hour after your usual bedtime.
• Shift your kids’ schedules, too: Adjusting your kids’ schedules in the days leading up to the change can help them adjust better and leave them feeling less drowsy for school on Monday morning, experts say.
• Change your clocks: “The brain looks for visual cues to know what time it is,” Ash said. Try changing the time on your watch and clocks to 15 minutes behind each day before daylight saving time ends.

After the time change:

• Avoid naps: “If you feel sleepy the day after the change, try to resist taking a nap because this will reduce the amount of sleep pressure present at bedtime and can create longer term sleep problems. If you must nap, keep it to 15 to 20 minutes, ideally in the late morning,” said Candice A. Alfano, Ph.D., director of the University of Houston’s Sleep and Anxiety Center of Houston.
• Seek out sunshine: Daylight saving time ending means there will be fewer sunlit hours when you’re awake, so try to take as much sun in as you can during your waking hours. “Light has potent effects on our internal body clock and will help you feel less tired,” Alfano added.
• Practice good sleep hygiene: All year round, it’s important to prioritize good-quality sleep with practices like limiting screens before bed, having a consistent bedtime, exercising regularly (and not too close to bedtime), reducing caffeine and alcohol intake, and trying to manage your stress levels.
• Be careful when driving: Losing an hour of sleep increases car accidents around the country, but there is also a greater risk after we fall back in November. So, make sure you’re being extra careful behind the wheel in the days after the time change.