“Go to bed at least an hour earlier…”; Ways to combat Daylight Saving Time
LEXINGTON, Ky. (ABC 36 NEWS NOW) – On Sunday (03/08), Daylight Saving Time begins as spring is almost here.
Something most people probably don’t look forward to because of that lost one hour of sleep.
Adjusting to the new time can be tough, according to Dr. Dan Florell with Eastern Kentucky University, especially for people who wake up later in the day.
“They are going to have a little rougher time than say your early morning people,” said Florell. “Especially, if you’re an early morning exerciser, you’ll probably get through the change a little more successfully.”
For people who may have a new baby that just started sleeping through the night, he says to expect that to change for a few days.
Florell says it takes the body around a week to adjust to the change.
He says the best thing to do to prepare is changing your sleep schedule.
“Go to bed at least an hour earlier, or half hour earlier, to two to three days ahead of the change.”
Florell also encourages people to to look at sunlight as soon as you can in the morning, rather than picking up your phone first thing. This will help your body adjust to the time change.
Lori Weaver Hawkins with AAA says drivers can experience a risk of drowsiness because of that hour of lost sleep.
She encourages people to get to bed earlier, make sure you get the recommended seven hours of sleep and be extra vigilant on the road, looking out for other drivers and pedestrians.
According to Hawkins, state police data shows that in 2024 there were more than a thousand vehicle crashes in Kentucky from drivers falling asleep and another 670 due to driver fatigue.
She says if you feel tired during a long drive, you should pull over into a safe area and take a 20-minute nap.
With Daylight Saving Time potentially becoming permanent, Florell thinks it’s best to keep the same time year round.
“As it is, we disrupt our cycles twice a year and so that’s two weeks of maybe more difficulty than we necessarily need to have.”
