Wirecutter Bonus Episode: How to Survive Daylight Saving Time
By Caira Blackwell , Rosie Guerin and Abigail Keel
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It's time to turn the clocks forward, but don't let daylight saving time harm your health. Here are our top tips for overcoming jet lag in the future.
Products we recommend:
- Best Blackout Curtains: IKEA Rose Almond Blackout Curtains or Target Pillowfort Blackout Cotton Chambray Kids Panel
- Best Eye Mask: Alaska Bear Natural Silk Sleep Mask
- Best sunrise alarm clock: Philips SmartSleep Wake-Up Light HF3520
- Caira loves this alarm clock: Hatch Restore 2
Transcript of the episode
ROSIE: Hello, I'm Rosie from The Wirecutter Show and here's a special bonus episode called "How to Survive Daylight Saving Time." Next Sunday, March 9th, begins Daylight Saving Time (DST), the time of year when we set our clocks forward one hour. We spend most of the year in daylight saving time and stay there until November when we return to standard time.
For most people, these twice-yearly time changes are just a part of life. Minor disadvantages.
But there's more than that. Scientists and researchers have studied the effects of the change to daylight saving time and found that it can have negative effects on our health. Caira, co-host of our show, talked about sleep hygiene and in particular what you can do to prepare your body for jet lag and some tips on how to best adjust to it. I will talk to her about this after a short break. We'll come back immediately.
ROSIE: Hello, Caira.
CAIRO: Hello.
ROSIE: Caira, I understand that we are about to enter your least favorite time of the year.
CAIRO: Yes. I really don't like this part of the year when we switch to Daylight Saving Time, and this year it starts on March 9th at 2:00 am local time.
ROSIE: So the saying goes, "Push forward, push back." That means we'll lose an hour of sleep right at the start of Daylight Saving Time, right?
CAIRO: That's right. But it's actually worse. Some people look forward to this moment because the nights are brighter. And it's pretty fun, especially in the summer, but it comes at a price. Studies have shown that even a small time difference of an hour can disrupt our circadian rhythm, which is essentially our body's internal 24-hour clock that keeps track of the sun. This can lead to jet lag-like symptoms simply because your biological clock doesn't match your social clock. Basically, your phone says it's 3:00 p.m., but our body knows it's actually 2:00 p.m. And this deviation can lead to a number of health problems. You may feel it when you have trouble falling asleep or waking up in the morning. But especially after the turn of spring, car accidents, heart attacks and certain types of strokes are more common during this time, according to the National Institutes of Health.
ROSIE: So the next natural question is: Why are we doing this to ourselves? All these years I've done it and assumed it's part of everyone's life. But why?
CAIRA: It's not that we, the individuals, do it. But you may have heard that farmers need it, but that's not true. Daylight saving time really benefits large companies. These include gas companies, golf clubs and garden equipment, which sell more because people spend their money outdoors in the summer.
ROSIE: Uh-huh.
CAIRA: Mm-hmm. So that's capitalism. But farmers famously hate daylight saving time because it's completely at odds with their schedules, which are based on the sun, just as our bodies should.
ROSIE: Well, well.
CAIRA: So we actually have 4.5 months of standard time, which is actual time, and then almost eight months of daylight saving time. So summer time has a lot more time. And most people think that the two-year-a-year time difference is, at worst, annoying and confusing. You think you sleep an hour in the fall, even if it's dark at night, but in the summer you have longer days. But in reality, daylight saving time is pretty bad for us all year round. A 2024 study found that standard time, which we are currently replacing with daylight saving time, is the optimal option for health and safety.
ROSIE: Follow the sun.
CAIRO: Yes.
ROSIE: Basically.
CAIRA: Mm-hmm.
ROSIE: Maybe you feel like you're trying to get out of major jet lag. And I find it very difficult to fall asleep at a reasonable time during my shift. What is your best advice to help people go to bed at a reasonable time and mitigate some of these impacts as we prepare for this time shift?
CAIRA: Let's say you usually go to bed around 10 p.m. You want to start changing your routine on Wednesday before making the change on Sunday morning. So in this case it would be tomorrow. You have to start. And all you're going to do is go in 15-minute increments starting Wednesday so that your body is ready to sleep at 9 p.m. on Saturday before the time change. And you do this in 15 minute increments every day.
And the same goes for your meal plan. So if you want to go to sleep earlier, that means you need to eat a little earlier so that your body doesn't try to digest the food while you're trying to relax, because that keeps you from sleeping. Again, this seems like common sense, but don't drink caffeine or alcohol, especially caffeine, before bed. You should give yourself at least six hours to fully digest this before beginning your relaxation routine.
ROSIE: A lot of this information is tips for good sleep hygiene in general.
CAIRO: Yes.
ROSIE: And it also seems to tie in with how you try to adjust to a new time zone when you go on vacation or move somewhere.
CAIRO: Absolutely. And every expert I spoke to basically explains how to have a healthy sleep routine. Her biggest tip is to simply have a good sleep routine, then it will be much easier to change or adjust it as needed. And if you generally find it difficult to fall asleep earlier, there are some tricks you can use to get your body to relax at night.
ROSIE: What's wrong with you?
CAIRA: The thing I use every night that my partner hates is temperature regulation. Therefore, the optimal sleeping temperature is between 60 and 67 degrees Fahrenheit.
ROSIE: Absolutely not.
CAIRO: Yes. It's cold.
ROSIE: That seems very low.
CAIRO: It's cold. I won't even lie. But when you're in bed and it's warm and you have the right blankets, it's nice. I'm enjoying it now. However, this temperature range has been shown to signal your body that it is time to shut down and it will begin to do so.
Another way to start this is when you take a hot shower at night. As soon as you get out of the shower, your body temperature drops again, which also signals to your body that it's time to go to sleep. Another thing that is really beneficial during this time is light regulation. Therefore, you should eliminate as much light as possible in the early evening so that you don't stay awake late at night. And then when you wake up in the morning knowing it's very dark at the start of daylight saving time, you just want to get as much sunlight as possible as early as possible. Blackout curtains are therefore very useful in preventing light from entering. And when you wake up, open it and enjoy the sun.
ROSIE: Flood your house with sunshine.
CAIRA: Mm-hmm. If you don't want to buy blackout curtains, I understand. If you have an eye mask or even a dark t-shirt, that will work.
ROSIE: And we'll add links to eye mask and blackout curtain recommendations in our show notes.
CAIRA: Mm-hmm. And then everyone knows it now, even if we don't follow it, including me. However, try to limit devices at night, as blue light again tells your brain it's time to wake up, not go to sleep. This means your TV, laptop, and cell phones emit the blue light that keeps your brain awake. So try to put an end to it as much as possible.
ROSIE: What my kids call wake-up time. "Is it time to wake up?"
CAIRA: Oh, that's nice.
ROSIE: Or at night: "Is it time for a nap?" Again, many of these tips are actually general sleep hygiene tips, but they become even more important when you're trying to adjust your body to the sundial's time shift.
CAIRO: Yes.
ROSIE: So how about waking up instead of making the sun come out as boldly as possible? I fear it will be impossible for me to get my children out of bed in the morning when it is still dark, let alone myself.
CAIRA: No, it's very hard to fight morning sleepiness because it's very dark. So I live in a basement apartment. My room is in the basement. And something I use all year round is a sunrise alarm clock to simply simulate the warmth of the sun in my bedroom when I wake up in the morning. I like the Hatch, but our official pick is the Phillips Alarm Clock. And besides, it's not the sun, but you turn on the light, you get up, you set the alarm on your phone somewhere far away, so you have to get up to turn it off.
ROSIE: Anything that tells your brain the lights are on is during the day.
CAIRA: Mm-hmm. Yes.
ROSIE: It may not feel like day on your body, but it is.
CAIRA: Exactly. Anything to tell your body to come get it. That's too much even for me, but getting out in the sun and doing something active is the best thing you can do for your body at this time. Go for a run, do window yoga, anything that really gets your body moving and tells you again that it's time to start the day.
ROSIE: Ripe fruit, maybe you could go outside if you have a balcony. Having a front door signals to your brain and body that it's morning and time to go to bed when you step out with your morning coffee to enjoy some sunshine.
CAIRA: Exactly.
ROSIE: Okay, so Caira, if you could recommend something, just one thing, to help people get through this change, what would it be?
CAIRA: I'm going to sound like a broken record, but it's easy, easy, easy. Lock up at night, pick up again in the morning.
ROSIE: I love it. Very good Caira, thanks for the advice.
CAIRA: Of course.
ROSIE: Next time we meet, I think we'll talk about vacuum cleaners.
CAIRA: I'm excited.
ROSIE: Hang in there. To learn more about Wirecutter's Daylight Savings coverage or to see the products Caira recommended today, visit NYTimes.com/Wirecutter or find a link in the show notes. I wish you a peaceful transition to summer time. Thank you for listening.
The Wirecutter Show is produced by me and Abigail Keel is the executive producer. Technical support from Maddy Masiello and Nick Pittman. Today's episode was mixed by Sonia Herrero. Original music by Dan Powell, Marion Lozano, Elisheba Ittoop and Diane Wong. Wirecutter's deputy editor and CEO is Cliff Levy. Ben Frumin is Wirecutter's editor-in-chief. Thanks for listening.
Credits
The Wirecutter Show is produced by Rosie Guerin and executive produced by Abigail Keel.
Edited by Abigail Keel.
Technical support from Maddy Masiello and Nick Pitman.
The episodes are mixed by Catherine Anderson.
Original music by Dan Powell, Marion Lozano, Elisheba Ittoop and Diane Wong.
Wirecutter's deputy editor and CEO is Cliff Levy.
Ben Frumin is Wirecutter's editor-in-chief.
Presented by Caira Blackwell and Christine Cyr Clisset.
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