This weekend, in the early hours of Saturday, October 26 to Sunday, October 27, the clocks will go back. At 03:00 it will be 02:00. This time change, accepted by most European countries, was imposed as an energy saving measure in the mid-1970s. If there were more hours of sunshine per day, the consumption would be lower.
On the other hand, the data seems to indicate that the measure barely makes sense today. A report prepared by the Committee on Industry, Research and Energy of the European Parliament in 2018 noted that although seasonal time changes can produce savings, these are marginal, and there is no certainty that such benefits will be obtained in all States. EU members. Even so, Spain is different. In March 1940, Franco wanted to align himself with the Nazis, also in terms of time zone. Since then, in our country we already have an hour more than we should because we are synchronized with Berlin and not with London, as would be the case according to the Western European time zone.
The rhythms of the Spanish also clash head-on with the rhythms of day and night. We eat meals very late, dinner time prime time It is one of the latest in the world and we fall asleep almost at dawn. All of this has consequences for health that have only been studied decades after the start of the time change. Pilar Alcántara, neurologist at the Torrejón University Hospital, defends in conversation with elDiario.es that health professionals dedicated to sleep and chronobiology have a common position: they advocate maintaining the so-called ‘winter schedule’, in which Spain would also have a time delay for your geographical position.
Alcántara points out that there are certain studies that would validate the benefit of stopping changing the time, since there is research that relates these transitions in summer with the increase in heart attacks and, on the other hand, the reduction of vascular events in winter after returning to the time. that we will have starting this Sunday by gaining one more hour and sleeping at a lower temperature. So while gaining more daylight hours may be a welcome change for some, the transition appears to have some health effects. “In my experience in consultation, after the night change and in summer many patients complain that it is difficult for them to rest, other symptoms such as pain, concentration and fatigue also increase,” illustrates the specialist.
Alteration of circadian rhythms
The changes brought about by daylight saving time, with longer and brighter days, can contribute to the interruption of the functioning of the body’s internal clock; the circadian rhythm. “We know that exposing ourselves to natural light first thing in the morning and exposing ourselves to darkness at night helps regulate our circadian rhythm,” explains the neurologist.
Another factor that Alcántara does not overlook is temperature, which also regulates sleep. “We need our core body temperature to drop at night to fall asleep. In summer the light and heat are maintained until late hours. In a country like ours where it is very hot during the day in summer, we are exposed to high temperatures when we go to bed and it makes it very difficult for us to sleep well into the darkness and into the night with its corresponding drop in temperature,” says.
Sleep problems are increasing in Spain, defends the neurologist. Therefore, remember that to improve sleep it must be understood as a rhythm of two phases: sleep-wake, which affect each other. During waking hours we would have to be sufficiently physically and mentally active to generate adenosine, receive intense natural light from outside and concentrate food consumption in this part of the day. In the sleeping part, we would have to gradually reduce physical and mental activity, as well as lights, temperature and meals.
“Due to current social rhythms and types of life and work, a large part of the population moves insufficiently during wakefulness, does not receive natural light, remains very active until late at night exposed to screens or cognitive activity and stressful, and has very late meal times,” says Alcántara. And he adds: “Although these are socially normalized schedules, they go against our health and physiology, which is increasing sleep problems and their consequences.”
Although these are socially normalized schedules, they go against our health and physiology, which is increasing sleep problems and their consequences.
Pilar Alcantara
— neurologist at the Torrejón University Hospital
A “mild” impact that could be avoided
She is not the only expert who thinks this way. Javier Albares, author of The science of good sleep (Península, 2023), also considers that “although winter time arouses less sympathy among the vast majority of the population than summer time, from a medical point of view it is more beneficial.”
For this expert in sleep medicine, it is essential that it is daytime when we get up in the morning. “During summer time, many people get up before sunrise and that, added to the fact that they sleep less because they go to sleep later, has a negative effect on their mood and health in general,” defend. If you choose a fixed schedule, he recommends that it be winter.
Even so, he admits that the change in schedule that we make now in October involves a simpler adaptation than the one we made in spring, since it allows us to sleep an hour more. In any case, he considers the impact of the time change on health to be “mild”, but “it can cause slight disorders that affect eating habits, concentration and mood, but they are temporary and subside within three or four days.” The people who notice these effects the most are children and the elderly.
Although winter time arouses less sympathy among the vast majority of the population than summer time, from a medical point of view it is more beneficial
Javier Albares
— sleep specialist doctor
José Miguel González-Moro, head of Pulmonology at the Príncipe de Asturias University Hospital in Alcalá de Henares, maintains that “the body gets used to everything.” He also believes that it is something bearable that may only alter biorhythms for a few days. “It would be convenient to keep a schedule, always the same. Now, there are specialists who see this as a drama and I see it as a bearable drama,” he says.
Schedules and customs beyond the time change
César Martín, president of the National Commission for the Rationalization of Spanish Timetables (ARHOE), affirms that the European Union has already promoted not changing the time in the member states. “Suppressing the time change is a trend at all levels. “Spain should think about what schedule we should adapt to, whether it is March or October,” he emphasizes. They also advocate for October.
This association, on the other hand, not only addresses the issue of schedule rationalization from the perspective of time change. “In Spain we have rhythms that are not those set by our own body and that directly or indirectly have negative impacts on our work-life balance, health and productivity,” he exemplifies. In a society in which everything is driven by the working day, ARHOE claims that companies should opt for a culture of flexibility, in which presenteeism is not taken into account as much.
#lives #improve #winter #time
