Daylight saving time wasn't invented to help farmers, and it doesn't help save energy. But it did help a New Zealander hunt bugs back in 1895.
Intro
Time springs forward on Sunday, March 10, for daylight saving time. This tradition was established in the U.S. in 1918, but is it really all it's cracked up to be? Wacky time zones, car accidents and hurting business are just a few of the reasons it might be time to ditch this dated convention. (Dreamstime/TNS)
1. A guy invented it to look for bugs
About 40 percent of countries around the world use daylight savings time, all so a guy could look for bugs. George Hudson, an entomologist from New Zealand, is crediting with coming up with the modern concept of daylight saving time in 1895. He suggested moving clocks so he'd have more after-work daylight hours to hunt for specimens. Seven years later, Englishman William Willett proposed a system of British Summer Time so he could spend more recreation hours riding horses. The idea was eventually implemented in 1916 in Germany, and the concept spread around the world. (Dreamstime/TNS)
2. People always get the name wrong
The majority of people mistakenly call the switch "daylight savings time" with an erroneous "s" in "savings." Daylight saving time is actually the right, grammatically correct name. Clearly it's not that important if folks can't even get the name right. (Dreamstime/TNS)
3. Not helpful for farmers
The myth persists that daylight saving time was created to benefit farmers, despite these people being the system's biggest enemies. Daylight saving time creates more daylight hours in the evening, but those in agriculture want more daylight hours in the morning. The time change also throws off how early farmers can do vital activities such as harvest or milk cows. In fact, farmers pushed Congress to override President Woodrow Wilson's establishment of daylight saving time in the United States in 1918. The practice was implemented sporadically until the Uniform Time Act was passed in 1966. (Bob Fila/Chicago Tribune/TNS)
4. Doesn't really save energy
Germany became the first country in the world to adopt daylight saving time in order to save energy during World War I. Back when coal power was king, DST did indeed save on lighting energy. Nowadays, multiple studies have proven these savings are more or less offset by the air conditioning that people run during an extra hour of daylight in warmer places. In fact, economists calculated that after Indiana moved to statewide daylight saving time in 2006, there was a 1 percent increase in energy use in the state due to air conditioning use in summer evenings and heat use in the cool spring and fall mornings. (Dreamstime/TNS)
5. Easy to live without it
The states of Hawaii and Arizona have opted out of observing daylight saving time. In Arizona, temperatures can be scorching as long as the sun is up, so more cool nighttime hours in the summer save energy and allow people to spend time outside. Hawaii's state legislature opted out of the practice in 1967 because Hawaii's position close to the equator means consistent sunlight throughout the day year round. (Lawson Danny/PA Photos/Abaca Press/TNS)
6. Doesn't benefit moderate locations
Hawaii and other locations closer to the equator have mild weather and get the same amount of sun regardless of daylight saving time. That's why when you look at a map of countries that observe daylight saving time, it's usually the ones further from the equator. For example, most northern countries in South America don't use it. Neither do the northern parts of Australia. While Arizona and Hawaii chose to ignore it, Florida has proposed making it DST year-round there. California is one step closer to getting there. In late 2018, Californians approved a ballot measure to make it DST all year. (Dreamstime/TNS)
7. Throws off your sleep
Our bodies' circadian rhythm is regulated by sunlight, and daylight saving time throws off people's sleep schedules. If we know it's evening but still see light outside, our bodies won't release key hormones that help us fall asleep when we regularly do. These disruptions to sleep affect our health in both large and small ways. (Dreamstime/TNS)
8. Increase in accidents
One of the negative side effects of DST sleep deprivation and circadian rhythm changes is that it affects your focus and reaction times. Daylight saving time has been linked to more car accidents and car accident fatalities in the days after the switch. There are also spikes in workplace accidents. (Dreamstime/TNS)
9. Focus up
For school age children, daylight saving time negatively impacts their academic performance. Some studies have shown that kids’ test scores in the week following the time shift are lower than they'd be if they took the test before. One study found that SAT scores in areas without daylight saving time were higher on average than places that did. (Dreamstime/TNS)
10. Cyberloafing
School-age kids aren't the only ones who might not be able to focus. Daylight saving time also affects the workforce, decreasing productivity. A 2012 study found that after the DST transition, employees are more likely to "cyberloaf" -- procrastinate by doing non-work-related things on their computers like surfing social media. (Dreamstime/TNS)
11. Bad for your health
Daylight saving time can be bad for your health. The time switch has been linked to higher risk of heart attack and stroke. People are also more likely to get sick, especially those with weakened immune systems. The transition to DST can also trigger cluster headaches in those who suffer from them as well as aggravate mental health problems. (Dreamstime/TNS)
12. Time zone headaches
Figuring out daylight saving time zones are more complicated than just Hawaii and Arizona. Anyone driving through the Grand Canyon state has to know that while most of Arizona ignores daylight saving time, the Navajo Nation, which covers part of northeastern Arizona, observes it. But inside the Navajo Nation is the Hopi Reservation, which does not. But inside the Hopi Reservation is a small piece of the Navajo Nation, which does. (Carlos Chavez/Los Angeles Times/TNS)
13. Bad for some businesses
On top of being bad for agricultural business, other sectors suffer because of daylight saving time. While retailers enjoy extra hours for people to get out and shop and candy companies love extra time for Halloween trick-or-treating, television and airline companies aren't fans of having more people out and about. People spend more time home watching television when it gets darker earlier. As for airlines, it's a major headache to keep domestic flights lined up with international ones with shifting times. When DST was extended by four weeks in 2005, the Air Transport Association estimated that all the schedule juggling would cost the industry $147 million. (Dreamstime/TNS)
14. DST is basically standard time
Since President George W. Bush signed a bill extending daylight saving time by four weeks starting in 2007, the U.S. has been on daylight saving time for eight months out the year. That's the majority of the time, while "standard" time is the minority. Why not simply make DST our country's standard time year-round? (Sebastian Kahnert/AFP/Getty Images/TNS) **FOR THIS STORY ONLY**
15. Keep it simple, stupid
So to recap, daylight saving time throws off people's sleep and immune systems, drives certain industries bonkers and doesn't save enough energy to be worth the hassle. Doing away with it or following in Florida's footsteps to make DST time our permanent standard time seem like logical moves. (Dreamstime/TNS)
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