‘Social jetlag’: How daylight saving time can impact our health

The bi-annual time change has been linked to adverse health effects, according to research and experts, who say we should stick to year-round standard time.

Did you wake up this morning feeling a bit confused or disoriented about what time it was? You’re not alone.

Clocks were set an hour back at 2 a.m. in most time zones across Canada as the switch from daylight saving time (DST) — also known as summer time or daylight time — to standard time kicked in on Sunday.

The bi-annual flip — clocks are set an hour forward in March — has become a controversial topic, with several provinces wanting to do away with the century-old practice.

The idea behind DST is to conserve energy and make better use of daylight during spring and summer when the days are longer.

Because the change leads to a mismatch between the local clock and our body’s internal clock, it can have measurable impacts on health, including sleep loss and heart problems, experts say.

“We shouldn’t be putting ourselves through this twice a year,” said Colleen Carney, a Ryerson University professor and sleep specialist.

“When there’s a change in either direction, it does show you how the body struggles with irregularity.”

From a health perspective, there is growing consensus that staying on permanent standard time year-round is the best option as this allows our natural body clock to be closer to the social clock.