Time to retire, but why are we doing this?

This weekend is “Fallback,” the time each year when most people in the U.S. set their clocks an hour earlier as Daylight Saving Time ends.

This rule seems arbitrary and unnecessary to many, and research shows that it can have negative effects on our sleep cycles and overall health.

So why are we doing this? Here's a look at the history of daylight saving time in the United States

When does time change?

This year that will be on November 3rd, this Sunday, at 2 a.m. It is one of two times a year that the time changes. The exact days are determined by federal law and have shifted over the years. The current data came into effect in 2007 as part of the Energy Policy Act, passed under George W. Bush's presidency.

Why does time change?

Daylight saving time was originally intended to reduce energy costs during wartime. According to the US Department of Defense, it was first enacted in the US on March 1, 1918, during World War I. The law was repealed after the war and reinstated during World War II. This led to this period being referred to as “war time”.

From the end of World War II until 1965, there were no fixed time rules nationwide. The Uniform Time Act of 1966 enshrined daylight saving time in federal law and established official time zones, ending confusion about what time it was in different parts of the country.

Does Daylight Saving Time Really Save Energy?

​A 2008 U.S. Department of Energy study after the daylight saving time “season” was extended by four weeks under President Bush found that electricity savings during the additional weeks were about 0.5% per day, or 0.03% of total electricity consumption was the whole year.

Critics say the savings are tiny and based on larger economic motivations, including lobbying by retailers who argue that daylight saving time leads to more people shopping and engaging in other activities in the evening.

Whose idea was it?

There is also a debate about where the idea of ​​daylight saving time came from in the first place. Some nod to Benjamin Franklin, but many historians give credit to a New Zealander who first proposed daylight saving time in an 1895 paper. Germany was the first country to introduce it in 1916 during World War I.

How does the change in time affect our health?

Scientists have linked the twice-yearly time change to several health and safety issues. For example, a 2016 study found that stroke rates are 8% higher in the first two days after each time change. A 2020 study linked the move to spring to a 6% increase in traffic accidents. And a 2017 study found that the fall time change led to an 11% increase in depression symptoms reported in hospitals.

Doctors believe that the reason for these effects is a lack of sunlight and disruptions in circadian rhythms. Some experts believe it would be better to keep Daylight Saving Time year-round, while others believe it would be best to keep Standard Time all the time.

What is public opinion about “falling back” and “leaping forward”?

A 2022 poll conducted by YouGovAmerica found that 59% of people in the United States support year-round daylight saving time. 19 percent were against it, 22 percent were undecided.

An attempt to temporarily make daylight saving time permanent for two years due to a nationwide gas shortage in 1974 was reversed after just a few months due to public outrage, including concerns about children going to school in the dark and an increase in traffic accidents.