The Whys and Wherefores of Daylight Saving Time The question I always ask myself on the second Sunday morning in March when I look at the clock upon waking up and see that is already an hour later than my usual waking hour, is “Why?” I feel I am already behind and I scramble to catch up all day long and then, when the clock tells me that it is time to go to bed, I really don’t feel like it, but know if I don’t, the next morning will bring a struggle to wake up and get going. And then along comes the first Sunday in November. It’s easy to get up – the sun is where it should be. But around eight or nine o’clock in the evening I feel myself getting drowsy, but have to wage a painful battle to stay awake because I know if I go to bed too early, the next day I will be waking up hours before I should. So, once again, I ask why? Why can’t they just leave the time alone! I say it’s time to stop the insanity of Daylight Saving Time once and for all. Just as many people enjoy early morning light as do extended evening light and if there is no real evidence of energy savings during DST, it’s time to do away with it. The story goes that Benjamin Franklin (remember “early to bed and early to rise”) was the first American to suggest Daylight Saving Time (and, by the way, it is Saving, not Savings as most of us say) because he felt that not using that extra early morning daylight in the summer months was just wasteful. But he never was able to implement it. The first year Daylight Saving Time was actually observed in the United States was 1918, but it wasn’t mandatory. Only the states that chose to observe it did so. It became mandatory during World War II with the thinking that valuable resources would be saved for the war effort and it was observed year round. In the seventies, during the Arab oil embargo, once again the US observed year round Daylight Saving Time. Now, we begin on the second Sunday of March and end on the first Sunday of November. Ending DST the first Sunday of November became the norm as candy makers lobbied for the extension from the last Sunday of October with the hope that trick or treaters would begin their night earlier, thus collecting more candy. This didn’t appear to happen, however, as children seemed to just wait until darkness fell to begin their trick or treating. Isn’t that what makes Halloween so exciting for kids: the deliciousness of being out in the dark of a sweet smelling, crisp, cold Autumn evening. Although one of the main reasons behind Daylight Saving Time is savings in energy, this hasn’t always borne out. Several studies have actually suggested the opposite. Since people are getting up, in effect, an hour earlier, lights are turned on that would not have otherwise been used. And people return home from work an hour earlier in the afternoon and evening during the hottest part of the summer day and immediately turn on their air conditioners. It also depends upon the region whether energy savings are gained. In the North where not as much air conditioning is used, there is a slight energy gain. In the South, however, there is a greater consumption of energy due to a much greater use of air conditioning. California does appear to benefit a good deal from Daylight Saving Time because of the mild weather and outdoor lifestyle which encourages people to stay outside later in the evening. All in all, however, energy savings seem to be a wash. Another often cited benefit of Daylight Saving Time is that there are fewer traffic accidents in the evening hours as a result of later nightfall. But at the same time pedestrians are killed threefold in the weeks following the changing of clocks back in the fall. Experts speculate that it takes a few weeks for drivers to adjust to the earlier arrival of dusk. In one study it was found that in the United States 65 pedestrians were killed in the week before DST began as compared with 227 pedestrians killed by cars in the week after DST ended. And parents worry, understandably so, about their children standing in the early morning dark waiting for the school bus. Daylight Saving Time wreaks havoc on those having sleep disorders or even those of us who simply find it difficult to sleep on occasion. Chronobiologist Till Roenneberg says his studies show that people never really adjust to DST. Our circadian body clocks are set by light and darkness and the artificiality of changing the clocks simply makes us tired. The incidence of heart attacks rise sharply in the days following the spring time change and scientists conclude there is no evidence other than the time change to explain the increase. Children, especially babies, have a very difficult time adjusting to the time change. Just try getting your six year old to bed at eight o’clock in July and try to get your one year old to sleep past five o’clock in the morning that first week the clocks change back in November! Those unfortunate souls with Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) suffer disproportionately when the clocks are changed and migraine sufferers and those with diabetes experience more negative symptoms when their sleep patterns are disrupted. Early spring when the clocks change one hour ahead is an especially difficult time for farmers and ranchers. Stock animals don’t adjust easily to alterations in their routine and the extra hour of darkness. Yields in milk production have been shown to drop and laying hens are stressed when they are disturbed at the earlier hour. And the simple fact that farm and ranch workers are forced to begin their very long day of work in the dark adds to the hardship. Proponents of Daylight Saving Time talk about the time gained in the summer to stay outside and enjoy the light in the evening. It is true that children can stay out and play later while the sun is still up. But what is lost? I remember being young and having the most magical times of all playing out under the stars. When I was little I lived in an area with fireflies (or lightning bugs, as we called them) and with their flickering lights and the warm night air under a full moon, it was magical. Do little kids even get to see fireflies with it staying light until 8:30 or 9:00 in the evening or even later. On the Fourth of July the younger children struggle mightily to stay up and watch the fireworks which don’t go off now until almost 10:00 p.m. It’s usually a lost cause for them and they miss out on the excitement. So much is lost for adults, as well, when they go to bed before it gets truly dark and miss out on the beauty and tranquility of a warm summer night. So, besides the energy saved by Daylight Saving Time (which is seriously questioned by many experts) and the boon to evening outdoor activities that many say they enjoy in the DST months, there seems to be negligible benefits of Daylight Saving Time. David Hurd, geoscientist at Edinboro University and head of the planetarium on campus, calls Daylight Saving Time, “daylight stupid time (Geisler).” He says his scientific friends agree with him and call it an “antiquated idea,” but one that is probably around to stay. He says “I think we’re in a habit,” and “It’s something we’ve done for a long time, and it’s hard to stop a moving train (Geisler).”

Works Cited
Geisler, Jennie. “Erie Sounds Off on Daylight Saving Time”. GoErie.com[->0]. n. pag. 11/03/2012. Web. 11/12/2012.
Allain, Rhett. “What Is Daylight-Saving Time?”. Wired.com. n. pag. 10/30/2012. Web. 11/3/2012.
“The Never-ending Daylight Saving Debate”. Timeanddate.com. n. pag. n.d. Web. 11/9/2012.
Handwerk, Brian. “Daylight Saving Time 2012: Why and When Does It End?”.
NationalGeographic.com. n. pag. 10/31/2012. Web. 11/11/2012.
“Daylight Saving Time – Incidents and Anecdotes”. Webexhibits.org. n. pag. n.d. Web. 11/4/2012

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