With clocks poised to fall back an hour this weekend, one B.C. psychology instructor says the science clearly supports keeping standard time year-round.
The daylight saving time change has long prompted discussion about whether Canada should continue adjusting its clocks twice a year or settle on one time permanently.
Dr. Michael Pollock, who teaches psychology at southern Vancouver Island’s Camosun College, says research on circadian rhythms shows standard time better aligns with human biology.
“In countries like Canada that are far from the equator, switching to permanent daylight saving time would mean we would be going to school or work in the dark for most of the winter,” Pollock said.
To keep the body’s internal clock, or circadian rhythm, in sync, he said getting morning light is essential. With daylight saving time, that can be compromised.
“The really big problem with this is that getting early morning sunlight exposure is essential for keeping our brain’s internal clock synchronized with the natural day-night cycle.”
Without that exposure, Pollock said, people’s internal clocks would gradually shift later, making it harder to wake up and focus during the day.
“This would be especially troublesome for adolescents and young adults, because at that age they are biologically driven to be night owls,” he said.
For many of those younger people, the change could disrupt sleep during key years of growth and learning.
“Their nighttime sleep quality would be disrupted and their daytime attention levels would greatly suffer from having daylight saving time in the winter, when it was never designed to be implemented,” Pollock said.
He noted that while permanent daylight saving time might sound appealing in theory, it hasn’t worked well elsewhere.
“If instead of going with permanent standard time, the ‘gold standard,’ we go with permanent daylight saving time, then this will result in Mornings Artificially Darkened – M.A.D.,” he said. “In theory, it sounds great, but in practice, in other jurisdictions, it’s just failed.”
The time change officially takes place at 2 a.m. on Nov. 2, so don’t forget to channel your inner Cher, it’s time to turn back time.