Spring Ahead, Fall back. it’s that time again folks. Do not forget to adjust your clocks Saturday night before you go to bed.
Daylight Saving Time (DST) kicks in this weekend, the annual bittersweet sign that spring is on its way, but it hurts your sleep schedule. At 2 a.m. local time on March 8, clocks will “spring forward” one hour.
The amount of daylight hours will grow longer as we head into spring but there is more to daylight saving than extra time spent outdoors and the sun setting later.
DST was first used by Germany during World War I as a way to conserve energy. The goal was to take advantage of the daylight hours in spring by moving an additional hour of daylight from the morning to the evening and not letting people sleep through the first few hours of sunshine.
America didn’t adopt a policy on DST until 1966, minus the states of Arizona and Hawaii.
So why not Arizona and Hawaii?
Arizona is one of the warmest locations in the summer. Increasing daylight hours would increase energy use from air conditioners and cooling systems. As for Hawaii, it is closer to the equator and does not see a large variation in daylight hours between winter and summer.
When your sleep-wake and light-dark cycles are out of sync, it can make you feel tired and downright grumpy. However, the longer daylight hours can be good for business. Retailers can benefit as it can cause customers to want to get out of their homes and shop and do outdoor activities.
If you’re not a fan of DST and the longer days ahead, you’ll have to wait until November 1. That’s when we “fall back” one hour.
