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Stumble into work this morning feeling weary? Struggling to get the kids to bed while the sun is still up at 7pm? Animals sleep through their usual 5am wake up?
Sleep specialist and Auckland Sleep director Sumit Samant says in theory a one-hour clock shift for daylight saving time should take a day to adjust, but in practise, we can expect to be back to normal after up to a week.
“A small percentage of people never get used to it,” he tells Stuff.
“Falling asleep and staying asleep can become a chronic issue.”
But the risks of permanent effects of daylight savings are minimal, Samant says. Most of us will have just a few days of feeling a little “off”.
READ MORE:
* Sleep experts say standard time, not daylight saving, should be permanent
* Why daylight saving time could be bad for you
* Here’s what you can do for jet lag
“The body gets thrown off balance and the sleep quality gets impacted. The duration of sleep gets impacted, and the body struggles to cope with that initially. And that causes tiredness.”
The reason why all comes down to circadian rhythms. Our own circadian rhythms are closely tied to light, or the day-night cycle. This basically means when it is dark it is hard to get up, and when it is light out, sleep does not come easy.
From a health perspective, changing the clocks twice a year does mess with our body clocks, and Samant says following the clock changes the risk of heart attacks, stroke and car accidents increases.
In New Zealand we have 27 weeks of daylight saving time, from the last Sunday in September to the first Sunday in April. But despite the clock change happening every year, many Kiwis still get caught out with daylight saving jet lag.
While that tiredness is expected and normal, there are things you can do to minimise the impact of the clock change, said Karyn O’Keeffe, senior lecturer at Massey University’s Sleep/Wake Research Centre.
While parents have unfortunately missed the ideal time to transition kids – before the clock change – O’Keeffe says exposing ourselves to morning light can help when the clocks go forward (this is not a tip for when the clocks go back, though, she warns).
That morning light exposure “reminds our bodies of the fact it is daytime”.
“Have a nice dose of bright light in the morning with the curtains open and or a morning walk, and then avoid those bright light devices in the evening.”
Samant also says a good sleep routine and schedule helps the body adjust.
“The more structured and regular someone’s sleep schedule is the more robust their sleep is.”
Conversely, if a person’s sleep patterns are already disjointed or badly managed, they are likely sleep-deprived and “on edge”. In those situations that one-hour sudden shift can make matters worse.
“It’s important to make sure we’re avoiding caffeine and alcohol [near bedtime], making sure we’ve got a good sleep environment,” says O’Keeffe.
Within a week the body will likely have adjusted, and you can look forward to enjoying those longer summer nights. Importantly, said Samant, feeling weary this week is normal.
“You might think one hour, it’s not a huge deal, but it causes significant impact on the body.”
As for the family pets sleeping through their 5am wakeup call?
Maybe just enjoy that one while it lasts.
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