Nearly 75,000 Canadians sign petition calling on federal government to end daylight saving time

With daylight saving time taking place on Sunday, a petition calling on the federal government to permanently end the practice has nearly 75,000 signatures.

You've likely seen or heard reminders online or on the radio to set your clocks and watches an hour ahead as we approach daylight saving time on Sunday, March 10, at 2 a.m. local time.

The extra hour of daylight lasts until Nov. 3 this year, when the clocks are turned back an hour.

While some prefer the extra hour of sunlight, others like Irene Shone think changing the clocks twice a year is hazardous to our health. She created a petition through Change.org calling on the federal government to permanently stop daylight saving time, with nearly 75,000 Canadians signing on as of Friday.

"Having the clocks move forward by an hour is not the norm, it's something that people are forced to get used to," Shone told CTVNews.ca. "That adjustment period feels like a sort of jet lag."

Shone, who lives in Brampton, Ont., but works in business development for a major food company based in Toronto, said daylight saving time has a negative affect on our circadian rhythms – the natural cycle our bodies go through every 24 hours – and that changing our internal clocks can make certain illnesses worse, as well as disproportionately affect people with depression and seasonal affective disorder.

The Canadian Sleep Society, a national organization that promotes healthy sleep through research and medical professionals, agrees with Shone.

"Not only does (daylight saving time) induce sleep deprivation at its inception in the spring, but it enforces later darkness during the summer, favouring delayed bedtime, social jetlag and more sleep loss," the organization said in a statement on its website.