Daylight Savings Time: How Does it Effect Your Body?
Daylight Savings Time: How Does it Effect Your Body?
What Does Rolling Back the Clock Have to Do with Fitness, Health, and Nurtition
Daylight Saving Time (DST) ended in the U.S. and Canada on Sunday, November 5, 2023. It’s a time period that I, like countless others, dread. We may gain more daylight in the early morning hours, but the nights start to creep in as soon as 4:30pm. Growing up I believed that we did this time change for the farmers in the spring and then the kids waiting for the bus in the fall. But as it turns out, I was wrong about both of those assumptions.
Although modern DST has only been used for about 100 years, ancient civilizations are known to have engaged in comparable practices thousands of years ago. For example, the Roman water clocks used different scales for different months of the year to adjust the daily schedules to the solar time.
Many sources also credit Benjamin Franklin for being the first to suggest seasonal time change. However, the idea voiced by the American inventor and politician in 1784 can hardly be described as fundamental for the development of modern DST. After all, it did not even involve turning the clocks. In a letter to the editor of the Journal of Paris entitled, “An Economical Project for Diminishing the Cost of Light,” Franklin simply suggested that Parisians could economize candle usage by getting people out of bed earlier in the morning. What's more… Franklin meant it as a joke.
DST was first implemented in the U.S. with the Standard Time Act of 1918, a wartime measure for seven months during World War I in the interest of adding more daylight hours to conserve energy resources. Year-round DST, or "War Time", was implemented again during World War II. So what does DST have to do with fitness, health and nutrition? A LOT!
With the sunshine depleted and colder temperature abundant, you have a recipe for hibernation. Many people actually struggle with a form of depression referred to as SAD or Seasonal Affective Disorder. SAD symptoms start in the fall and continue into the winter months, sapping your energy and making you feel moody. Treatments for SAD include getting as much natural sunlight as possible, exercising regularly and managing your stress levels. There is also light therapy, where a special lamp called a light box is used to stimulate exposure to sunlight.
This seasonal change can also cause weight gain. How many of us comment on putting our winter weight on? Here again, this is mainly due to boredom and a change in our dietary choices. During these months we tend to enjoy more comfort foods. Plus, let’s throw a bunch of holidays into the mix that are all about eating and drinking.
So, what to do about all of this? Be aware. Know what is coming and do your best to stay in a routine that includes daily exercise, hydration and a healthy diet. This can be very difficult for so many people. Understand that you are not alone in this struggle. There are apps and gadgets that can remind you to get up and move. There are fitness centers that are full of light and friendly like-minded folks that are still open after dark. And there are plenty of healthy food options to enjoy during these next five months. Before you know it, March will be here and we will once again “spring forward”.
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Kim Duke is a certified personal trainer and owner of Core Performance Fitness and Training, located at 55 Bristol Lane, Ellicottville, NY. Kim resides in Ellicottville where she raised her two sons, Zach and Nik. For more information about her studio visit her Facebook page, go to www.coreperformancefitness.com or call her directly at 716-698-1198.
