Clinical reviewThe impact of daylight saving time on sleep and related behaviours
Section snippets
The rationale behind daylight saving time
Daylight saving time (DST) refers to the practice of adjusting the local clock time so that daylight hours coincide with peak periods of waking activity, particularly travel, recreation and work. The idea is attributed to Benjamin Franklin who, in 1784, wrote of his concern for the economic cost of energy consumption during dark evenings.1 It was to be many years later before William Willett, a fellow of the Royal Astronomical Society, repeatedly argued the case through Parliamentary process,
Aims and scope of this review
The study of DST transitions provides a valuable opportunity to consider the effects of relatively minor externally imposed levels of sleep disruption on daytime function.
The aims of this review are twofold:
- 1.
To explore the experimental data relating to the immediate impact of transitions at the start and end of DST on sleep mechanisms.
- 2.
To evaluate evidence of a presumed link between sleep disruption attributed to DST and short-term behavioural consequences, including traffic accidents, illness
DST and sleep
Experimental studies of DST rely on data generated from survey, diary, polysomnography and activity monitors (summarised in Table 1) covering the period immediately prior to and following the spring and autumn clock change transitions. Studies vary in terms of seasonal focus (spring and/or autumn), latitude, timing of data (within and between comparison years), and length of observation, all of which present considerable difficulties when making comparisons across studies.
Road traffic accidents and DST
It has been argued that in the short-term the disruptive effects of DST on sleep are responsible for an apparent increase in vehicle and pedestrian road traffic accidents. The main reports in this area are summarised in Table 2. In the UK, Monk and Folkard14 described this observation in a preliminary analysis of accident data linked with the autumn transition. Monk24 then went on to compare UK accident data following the 1972 and 1973 spring transitions with the preceding 2 y period in the UK
Summary and conclusions
It has been known since the 1970s that DST transitions disrupt sleep duration, quality and placement,14 suggesting a persistence of the internal clock time for about 1 wk after the adjustment of local time. Although initially regarded as transitory and of little consequence, a growing body of evidence looking at the effects of sleep disruption on daytime function suggests otherwise. Scientific studies have focused on direct measures of adjustment, with diary and actigraphic data highlighting
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2021, Journal of Environmental ManagementCitation Excerpt :One consequence of sleep disruption is fatigue; people report feeling sleepy after a clock-shift (Harrison, 2013). Disruption to the sleeping cycle can reduce motivation, attention, and alertness, which may lead to an increase in automobile accident rates (Harrison, 2013; Hicks et al., 1983; Lahti et al., 2010; Robb and Barnes, 2018). DST associated increases in vehicle accidents have been documented in a number of countries (Carey and Sarma, 2017; Fritz et al., 2020; Prats-Uribe et al., 2018).
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2024, Annals of Behavioral Medicine
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