Daylight Saving, what is it and the not so good of it

Writer: Guosen Feng

Whether it is Christmas, the holidays, the snowy weather, the act of gifting gifts to your loved

ones, or whatever makes you excited for the winter. There is one thing that isn’t so exciting...

Daylight saving.

Daylight saving is basically the practice of adjusting the clock one hour forward or backward

twice a year. This usually takes place on every second Sunday in March and on the first Sunday

of November.

While daylight saving is great for the summer time, allowing for more daylight in the evening, it

messes with our body clock, aka circadian rhythm. For example, if your usual sleeping schedule

is from 11 PM to 7 AM, then you would be on a 10 PM to 6 AM sleep schedule after daylight

saving. Even though you are still getting the 8 hours of sleep, your natural sleep-wake pattern is

disrupted, which affects the quality of your sleep.

In the colder season, daylight saving can actually lead to season depression disorder. According

to NHS UK, “SAD is sometimes known as "winter depression" because the symptoms are

usually more apparent and more severe during the winter.” The main cause of SAD is the amount

of sunlight that affects melatonin, serotonin, and circadian rhythm. So for people who feel more

depressed, irritated, or in general in a low mood more often, you are most likely feeling the

effects of SAD.

So for any of you vampires or people who’s more indoorsy out here, plan some time to go

outside and get enough sunlight to prevent SAD!

Source: https://www.nhs.uk/mental-health/conditions/seasonal-affective-disorder-sad/overview/