Biological clock striking incorrectly because of summer time

Sleep researcher Marijke Gordijn wonders the usefulness of the summer time. This switch disturbs for a few days the biological clock, although little is known about the consequences. Men are therefore more weary and less alert. Children have even bigger adaptation problems.

 

Sleep researcher Marijke Gordijn found that little is known about the advantages and disadvantages of the summer time. In the Netherlands summer time was first introduced in 1916 and used till 1945.It was reintroduced in 1977 because of the oil crisis. It was thought to be erergyreducing. “Above that most people like it to have one hour more light” tells Marijke Gordijn.

 

Less alert on the Monday morning after summer time

Opponents of the summer time claim that an hour less sleep in the weekend causes more accidents in the mondaymorning. Gordijn isn’t convinced : There has been research that concluded that people are less alert when driving in the morning after the summer time. However the amount of traffic is more scatterd on such a day, because many people sleep a little longer. That reduces the possibility of accidents.

 

 

Biological clock falling out of step

Gordijn explains what happens when you put the clock forward. “Your body has its own rhythm, the biological clock, that takes approximately 24 hours. This so-called cardian rhythm controls among other things sleep. This rhytm doesn’t take 24 hours exactly and has therefore to be adjusted constantly. This happens through light.”By means of our behaviour (for exampleby closing the curtains) we can control this process a little, but eventually our rhythm is mostly influenced by light instead of our watch.

By putting the clock forward your internal rhythm falls out of step with the light-dark rhythm. Gordijn thinks that most people adjust reasonably well after putting forward the clock. “After a few days most problems will be solved. Moreover it’s only one hour.” Nevertheless Gordijn isn’t an explicit proponent of the summer time. “It is quite a fuss.  And the purpose isn’t clear.Some scientists claim that no energy is saved.” Moreover many groups are troubled from the adjusting of the clock. “Children for example live less with the clock and have bigger adjusting problems.”  

 

Better to start summer time on a weekday

Gordijn sees possiblities for improvement: “Nowadays summer time starts at Saturday night. That’s probably practical for trade and industry. However in the weekend we do sleep out anyway. This hour is extra. It results in a substantial lack of sleep and wearinesson Monday morning. This could possibly be solved by starting summer time on a weekday. “People would perhaps go to bed an hour earlier and adjust faster”

 

Gordijn stresses that more knowledge is needed of sleep and the biological clock for a good evaluation of summer time. “The university of Groningen is coöperating with other institutes in a large European project, EUCLOCK, to find out the functioning of the biological clock in daily live. More knowledgde makes it possible to improve the statements about the advantages and disadvantages of summer time.