On Sunday, Nov. 5, the clocks will fall back an hour making our days feel shorter yet again. As we end our school or work day, it will most likely be pitch black outside and the dreaded dark winter season begins. For years there has been talk of changing this biannual clock change to a permanent daylight savings time. The bill is called the Sunshine Protection Act and has been around since 2018. After continuous years of proposed legislation, there has been no progress on the adoption of this law. Even after momentum was gained last year that gave much hope that things would change, no decisions were made, and we should expect to be in the same position next year as well. 

It may seem like a biannual clock change is just a nuisance, but much more happens during the switching of the clocks back and forth than many believe. Researchers have found the change in daylight hours affects physical and mental health, car accidents, energy consumption, crime, economic activity, and school performance. All of this could be avoided with the implementation of a permanent daylight saving time, so we do not have to make this change every year. Losing an extra hour of daylight at the end of every day can really take a toll on someone over time. Especially in the midwest, when we are already trapped inside due to freezing temperatures. Mental health is greatly affected when you go home in complete darkness every day. When it is dark all the time, motivation to leave the house or stay productive is usually depleted leading to lower performance in school and work.

Experts have compared drowsy driving following the time change to drunk driving since reactions are slower and the attention span is shortened. New research finds that fatal car crashes increase by six percent the week following daylight saving time. The altering of your sleep schedule will not only cause dangers on the road but lead to serious health conditions. The stress related to switching your sleep schedule and readjusting your routine has been linked to increased heart attacks the week following the time change. To think this happens yearly and the effects have been researched is shocking to me since there has been no legal change to this law.

Throughout my childhood, I would always ask my parents why the clocks would have to change because I always dreaded it. Before I had an iPhone that would automatically switch the time for me, I had to manually switch my alarm clock. More than once I ended up being late for school because I would forget. During the switch, I would always have the hardest time going to bed and would always feel terrible in the morning. It was always a rough week or two, and I wouldn’t really start to wake up until halfway through the school day. On top of that, it was always the worst to see the sun setting on my bus ride home from school. It felt easier to stay in because it was always dark out, and it seemed like it was always super late at night when it really was just early evening.

Regardless of what schedule the clocks are on, it is still very hard to get through winter with the sun going down so early in the evening. This hour change is something to offset the very early dark nights. With the sun setting later people can drive easier and avoid accidents, be inclined to leave the house more and not go through a couple-week process of getting themselves adjusted to a new schedule. I can only hope to see a permanent time change soon, so the winter season is slightly easier to get through.