Time for a change

Laura K. Silver is a trustee of the Jewish Light who writes a blog for the paper’s website (stljewishlight.com/laura).  She owns The Paper Trail of St. Louis, a financial and legal concierge service. Laura is married and the mother of two middle school age children.

By Laura K. Silver

I know I have mentioned it before, but there is something that has been bothering me for several years that I simply cannot understand.  Why, when Daylight Savings Time is a human made construction, can it not be moved to a Saturday? 

I don’t know about all of you, but Monday mornings post-transition are horrible for me. I can’t fall asleep as early as needed on Sunday night and the Monday morning wake up is brutal. It’s bad most years, but this year, it is particularly awful. Currently, my kids attend a school that starts well before 8 a.m. This means they are waiting at the bus stop before 7 a.m.  That lost hour is huge for us. 

In March 2013, a study came out in the American Journal of Cardiology saying that the number of heart attacks on the Monday following the Daylight Savings Time transition are higher than other Mondays during the year.  Studies have suggested the rate is anywhere from 10 percent to 25 percent higher.  By Tuesday, some studies suggest the number goes right back to where it normally is on any other Tuesday. Incidentally, the number of suicides and road accidents are also increased on the Monday following the switch.

It should come as no surprise that the change back to standard time in November is associated with a decline in heart attacks compared to other Mondays. People need time to adjust. It’s just that simple.

Given this information and just common sense, it seems to me that the most logical thing would be to change our clocks overnight on Friday to Saturday, give our bodies two days to adjust rather than one.  We would approach that Monday with at least a shot of an easier transition.  It certainly can’t be any worse than the way it currently stands.

The Energy Policy Act of 2005 allowed us to move the dates a full month differently.  It seems that a minor amendment could be proposed to allow us to change it by just one day. 

I’ll be happy to be the first to sign the petition!