Shifty Seasons: Seasonal time shifts are ridiculous and dangerous

Spring forward, fall back. This notion was standardized when President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the Uniform Time Act in 1966, and it makes as little sense now as it did then. The notion was conceived by famous overthinker Benjamin Franklin (to no effect) in 1784 when he penned a satirical piece on thrift. It was first adopted by the British in 1916 to conserve fuel during the first world war before spreading across Europe and North America in the early to mid-20th century (while being largely rejected by the rest of the world… including Arizona and Hawaii). 

But seasonal time shifts now leave the globalized culture of the 21st century with a great deal of imbalance and practical headaches. Why should a colleague in Tokyo, say, have to remember to account for an additional hour when trying to work with someone in Westerly? What is the point of the Navajo Nation in Arizona subscribing to the notion of daylight savings in order to keep pace with the rest of the country, when the state in which their land is located does not? Worse still, the United States changes their clocks at a different time from the majority of countries that do (with Greenland being particularly unique in starting their daylight savings on the Saturday before the last Sunday in March at 10pm local time … a country with four time zones. Bonkers.) 

But there are deeper implications to seasonal time shifts than a bunch of perplexed clock makers. According to a study conducted by Aarhus University Hospital in Denmark, losing that precious hour of afternoon daylight in the fall can actually trigger severe mental illnesses, including bipolar disorder and seasonal affective disorder (SAD). The study also reported an alarming 11% increase in depression cases following the time change. Swedish researchers reveal that the chance of suffering a heart attack increases in the first three working days after the spring switch, likely due to the hour sleep loss and the stress of a schedule change. And it’s not just in Europe, either. A report filed in Melbourne, Australia, reported an increase in male suicide rates in the days following the introduction of daylight savings. And the news continues to get worse. In Massachusetts, the New England Journal of Medicine found an increase in road traffic accidents on the Monday immediately following the changing of the clocks.

And for what? At this point, absolutely nothing. It actively costs money (Chmura Economics & Analytic estimates that daylight saving time costs the country $430 million each year, with the Independent Institute contending that the cost of seasonal time shifts runs as high as $1.7 billion because of heart attacks, workplace accidents and tired employees web surfing at work), it is bad for our health, and, to fly in the face of a well-trodden myth, it does not help farmers. It was never intended to do so, and it actually costs them money and time.

So, dear readers of Motif, I encourage you; let’s start a revolution by picking a time this spring and sticking with it. If we all join this great movement, then we might just rid ourselves of this scourge once and for all.