This Sunday, November 3rd, 2024, folks across Colorado\u2014and most of the U.S.\u2014will turn their clocks back one hour at 2:00 a.m. local time. For most of us, this means an \u201cextra\u201d hour of sleep, as we officially end Daylight Savings Time (DST) and return to Standard Time. Enjoy it while it lasts, because come Sunday, March 9th, 2025, we\u2019ll jump an hour forward again to reclaim the evening daylight.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
If you\u2019re like me, though, you don\u2019t give this as much thought as you used to. Between smartphones, tablets, and smart-home gadgets, most of our devices update automatically. Gone are the days of running through the house on Saturday night, spinning the clock back on the microwave, oven, and wall clocks (though there\u2019s always that one<\/em> clock you\u2019ll forget until mid-Monday). But whether you notice it or not, this little time shift has a bigger impact on our lives than most folks realize.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Daylight Savings Time wasn\u2019t just some arbitrary idea. It has its roots in the early 20th century, and the first large-scale use happened during World War I. The concept was to \u201csave\u201d daylight and make better use of the available sunlight to conserve energy\u2014less need for artificial lighting in the evening, the thinking went. The U.S. adopted DST again during World War II for similar reasons, and it became a national standard by the 1960s.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Benjamin Franklin gets a lot of credit (or blame) for the idea, thanks to a tongue-in-cheek essay he wrote suggesting Parisians could save on candles by waking up earlier. But modern DST really came from the idea of maximizing productivity and saving resources<\/em>. It was all about squeezing the most efficiency out of every day\u2014something Americans tend to love. And for a time, it did seem to work: studies back then suggested DST cut energy consumption by about 1%.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The problem is, while saving energy sounded like a smart idea, the way DST disrupts our lives isn\u2019t as harmless as it seems. Modern research shows that these time changes come with serious side effects\u2014especially during that spring-forward jump in March. Adjusting our sleep schedules by just one hour can mess with our bodies\u2019 natural rhythms, making us groggy, irritable, and more prone to mistakes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Here\u2019s what the numbers tell us:<\/p>\n\n\n\n It turns out that our bodies don\u2019t handle even minor sleep disruptions very well. Losing just one hour can trigger a ripple effect of drowsiness and stress, which, for some people, can last for days. Meanwhile, the fall-back shift in November isn\u2019t quite as bad, but it\u2019s not all sunshine either\u2014early sunsets can lead to Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) for some folks, as the lack of evening daylight weighs on our mood.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Given the drawbacks, it\u2019s no surprise that there\u2019s a growing movement to eliminate the time change altogether. Here in Colorado, there\u2019s been plenty of talk about doing away with the twice-a-year time shift, joining states like Arizona and Hawaii, which already keep their clocks the same year-round. The Colorado General Assembly has introduced bills several times in recent years to either stay on Standard Time or adopt permanent Daylight Savings Time, but these efforts have yet to pass.<\/p>\n\n\n\n At the national level, there\u2019s also been action. The U.S. Senate unanimously passed the Sunshine Protection Act<\/strong> in 2022, which would make DST permanent nationwide. But the bill stalled in the House, leaving us to wrestle with our biannual time shifts for the foreseeable future.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The arguments for and against permanent DST are pretty interesting:<\/p>\n\n\n\n It\u2019s a debate between prioritizing evening daylight or sticking with our natural body rhythms. For some, it\u2019s a matter of practicality, while others see it as a health and productivity issue. Either way, it\u2019s clear that people feel pretty strongly about this topic\u2014whether they love or loathe the time changes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Ultimately, whether you\u2019re a fan of the fall-back tradition or ready to say goodbye to the hassle altogether, the time change seems to come down to personal preference. For now, we\u2019re still \u201cfalling back\u201d and \u201cspringing forward,\u201d but the winds of change are blowing. If the right legislation passes, this might be one of the last years we reset our clocks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n What do you think? Are you in favor of sticking with one time all year long, or do you enjoy the tradition of changing the clocks twice a year? Share your thoughts in the comments below\u2014we\u2019d love to hear how the time change affects your routine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Now, don\u2019t forget to set your clocks back this weekend (if you still have a few old-school ones around). And enjoy that extra hour of sleep\u2014it\u2019s the one time of year we all get a freebie.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" On November 3rd, 2024, Coloradoans will set clocks back one hour as Daylight Savings Time ends. But as traffic accidents rise and workplace productivity dips, many wonder: is it time to scrap the biannual clock changes? Learn the pros and cons of keeping DST and how legislation could make this the last time change.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1930,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","_acf_changed":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[58,1],"tags":[359,350,355,354,356,352,344,360,345,298,361,347,228,357,358,346,348,349,351,353],"class_list":["post-1928","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-bully_pulpit","category-latest","tag-coloradonews","tag-daylightsavingstime","tag-dstimpacts","tag-enddaylightsavings","tag-energysavingsdebate","tag-extrahourofsleep","tag-fallback2024","tag-familyroutines","tag-hearthealthrisks","tag-mentalhealthawareness","tag-outdooractivities","tag-permanentdaylightsavings","tag-publicsafety","tag-seasonalaffectivedisorder","tag-sleephealth","tag-springforward2025","tag-sunshineprotectionact","tag-timechangereminder","tag-trafficaccidents","tag-workplaceproductivity"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/scottkjames.com\/website_d4298829\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/different-alarm-clocks-on-table-time-change-concept.jpg?fit=2000%2C1333&ssl=1","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/scottkjames.com\/website_d4298829\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1928","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/scottkjames.com\/website_d4298829\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/scottkjames.com\/website_d4298829\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/scottkjames.com\/website_d4298829\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/scottkjames.com\/website_d4298829\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1928"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/scottkjames.com\/website_d4298829\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1928\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1931,"href":"https:\/\/scottkjames.com\/website_d4298829\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1928\/revisions\/1931"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/scottkjames.com\/website_d4298829\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1930"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/scottkjames.com\/website_d4298829\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1928"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/scottkjames.com\/website_d4298829\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1928"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/scottkjames.com\/website_d4298829\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1928"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\n\n\n\nWhy Do We Have Daylight Savings Time Anyway?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\n\n\n\nThe Downsides: Fatigue, Accidents, and Workplace Chaos<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\n
\n\n\n\nA Growing Movement to Ditch Daylight Savings Time<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\n
\n\n\n\nWhat Do You Think?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\n\n\n\n