By Donna V. Scaglione
The good news about Daylight Saving Time is that after we turn the clocks an hour ahead at 2 a.m. Sunday, we gain an hour of daylight later in the day. The bad news is that the sleep deprivation that results can really throw our bodies off.
A 2008 study by the Karolinska Institutet found that the number of serious heart attacks rises an average of 5 percent during the first week following the start of the time change. Swedish researchers attributed the increase to the loss of sleep and disruptions to the body’s chronobiological rhythms, according to ScienceDaily.com. Other studies show 8 percent to 10 percent increases in the number of traffic accidents the following Monday due to sleepy driving.
This year, don’t face the time change without a little preparation. Here’s how you can feel better come Sunday morning.
1. Turn in early tonight
Going to bed 15 minutes earlier tonight and Friday night, and getting up 15 minutes earlier the following days will help reduce the impact the time shift will have on you, experts from the University of Michigan Sleep Disorders Center tell EmaxHealth.com. On Saturday night, set your clock an hour ahead before turning in and awaken at the time you typically rise on Sunday. Making such a gradual adjustment — starting at least three days ahead is ideal— decreases the muddled, disconnected feeling you can get during time shifts or when you travel to other time zones.
