ABSTRACT

It's an issue that divides US residents nearly as much as politics does: Should we lock the clock on Standard Time or Daylight Saving Time, or should we continue to change our clocks every fall and spring, perhaps with a few tweaks to exactly when? Surprisingly little research over the years has been conducted on the health effects of changing the clock twice a year, although dozens of professional medical organizations have endorsed permanent standard time. They argue that people never fully adjust to losing that extra hour of sleep in the spring, resulting in increased incidence of poor sleep, motor vehicle crashes, depression, and stroke until the return to standard time in the fall. However, although surveys have found that most people would like never having to change their clocks again, they'd prefer year-round daylight saving time, not standard time. But it would take an act of Congress to lock the clock after springing forward.

About the Speaker:

Rita Rubin has covered medicine and health for her entire journalism career. For nearly seven years, she has been a senior staff writer for the Journal of the American Medical Association's Medical News section, where she's written about a variety of topics, including vaccines and infectious diseases, abortion and contraception, substance use disorder, Alzheimer's disease, and science misinformation. Previously, Rita freelanced for such news organizations as WebMD and Forbes.com and worked as a medical writer for USA Today. Born and raised in Wheeling, WV, Rita has a master's degree in writing from Johns Hopkins and bachelor of science in journalism degree from Northwestern. She lives in Bethesda, MD.