Dear Doctor Column, March 28, 2005

Question:

I always seem to have a lot of trouble adjusting to daylight saving time changes, as do my two children. Any suggestions?

Answer:

The country's annual "spring forward" ritual that marks the return of Daylight Saving Time (DST) can cause disruptions in normal sleep patterns for children and adults. This year, DST returns at 2:00 AM, Sunday, April 3, 2005, local standard time; it ends at 2:00 AM, Sunday, October 30, 2005, local daylight time. The National Sleep Foundation (NSF) says there are steps you can take to minimize the sleep loss and enjoy the benefits of healthy sleep and productive days.

DST is a way of getting more out of the summer days by advancing clocks 1 hour during the summer. Then, the sun will appear to rise 1 hour later in the morning when people are usually asleep anyway, at the benefit of 1 hour longer evenings when awake: The sunset and sunrise are 1 hour later than during normal time. This provides more usable hours of daylight for activities that occur in the afternoon and evening, such as outdoor recreation. DST also can be a means of conserving electrical and other forms of energy. In the fall, as the period of daylight grows shorter, clocks are set back to correspond to standard time.

Interestingly, Benjamin Franklin, when serving as U.S. minister to France in 1784, wrote an article recommending earlier opening and closing of shops to save the cost of lighting. But, it was not until World War I that several counties in Europe adopted DST. On March 31, 1918, President Wilson signed the law establishing DST in the U.S. In 1987, federal legislation fixed the period of DST in the U.S. as the first Sunday in April to the last Sunday in October. Arizona, Hawaii, and sections of Indiana do not use DST.

According to UAB sleep experts, children and adults can experience sleep disruptions with the return of DST, often finding it harder to fall asleep, since they are not as sleepy as usual at bedtime.

NSF's 2004 Sleep in America poll, children aged 10 years and younger sleep less than experts recommend. The poll also finds that parents say they get less sleep than they need, so it is important for adults and children to minimize any additional sleep loss that can result from the time change.

For children, NSF offers two tips to ease the transition, allowing your child to adjust to the time change within a few days to a week:

• Maintain your child's regular sleep, wake, and nap times. Try not to compensate for the lost hour by delaying bedtime or allowing your child to sleep in, which will only increase the time it takes to transition. There may be some crankiness from being tired, but this should last only a couple of days.
• Make gradual adjustments. Some parents find it best to try to start making adjustments on Saturday night rather than wait until Sunday, a school night. Parents might even want to try making a slow transition starting on Thursday night before the time change, moving their child's bedtime earlier by 15 minutes each night. By Sunday night their child will be right back on schedule.

Parents also can experience sleep loss and schedule disruptions because of the time change. As many parents know, additional sleep loss is not something they can afford. NSF polls reveal most adults already get less than the recommended 7 to 9 hours of nightly sleep needed to be fully alert the next day. Too many people will sacrifice yet another hour of sleep when the clocks change — an hour they cannot afford to lose, particularly on the weekend when people try to catch up on the sleep they missed during the week.

These few simple lifestyle changes can help most people transition into DST:

• Try to sleep more than usual a few nights prior to and immediately following the time change.
• Take a nap in the afternoon on Sunday if you need it, but not within a few hours of your regular bedtime. Napping too close to bedtime can disrupt nighttime sleep.

Learn more about what you can do to improve your sleep and recognize signs of potentially serious sleep disorders by visiting NSF's Web site, www.sleepfoundation.org.