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The transition to daylight saving time (DST) is beneficial for energy conservation but at the same time it has been reported to increase the risk of cerebrovascular and cardiovascular problems. Here, we evaluate the effect of the DST shift on a whole spectrum of diseases-an analysis we hope will be helpful in weighing the risks and benefits of DST shifts. Our study relied on a population-based, cross-sectional analysis of the IBM Watson Health MarketScan insurance claim dataset, which incorporates over 150 million unique patients in the US, and the Swedish national inpatient register, which incorporates more than nine million unique Swedes. For hundreds of sex- and age-specific diseases, we assessed effects of the DST shifts forward and backward by one hour in spring and autumn by comparing the observed and expected diagnosis rates after DST shift exposure. We found four prominent, elevated risk clusters, including cardiovascular diseases (such as heart attacks), injuries, mental and behavioral disorders, and immune-related diseases such as noninfective enteritis and colitis to be significantly associated with DST shifts in the United States and Sweden. While the majority of disease risk elevations are modest (a few percent), a considerable number of diseases exhibit an approximately ten percent relative risk increase. We estimate that each spring DST shift is associated with negative health effects-with 150,000 incidences in the US, and 880,000 globally. We also identify for the first time a collection of diseases with relative risks that appear to decrease immediately after the spring DST shift, enriched with infections and immune system-related maladies. These diseases' decreasing relative risks might be driven by the documented boosting effect of a short-term stress (such as that experienced around the spring DST shift) on the immune system.

Motor vehicle crashes are a persistent cause of unintentional deaths in the United States. Scholarship on how manmade interventions and natural phenomena interact to effectuate such calamitous outcomes is longstanding. One manmade intervention of interest in the literature is daylight saving time (DST). Unfortunately, results on how the natural phenomena attributable to DST interact with driver behavior are inconsistent. To advance knowledge on DST-safety interactions, this study adopts a multilevel model approach to fatal motor vehicle crash outcomes in the contiguous United States. Results from a national analysis contextualize results from zonal analyses to unmask within- and between-time zone differences in DST-safety interactions. In the national analysis, motor vehicle crash fatalities decrease somewhat during DST (−0.10%). In the zonal analyses, motor vehicle crash fatalities decrease more so in the Central and Eastern time zones (−2.00% and −2.00%, respectively), but increase somewhat in the Pacific and Mountain time zones (+0.30%) during DST. The spatiotemporal context of the national analysis highlights specific policy implications from the zonal analyses to decrease the lethality of motor vehicle crashes. Specifically, interdictions to target alcohol and/or drug involvement in the northern latitudes of the Pacific and Mountain time zones during DST, the Central time zone at dawn or dusk before or after DST, and the northern latitudes in the Eastern time zone before or after DST are important. Generally, national DST-safety benefits mask zonal DST-safety costs in the Pacific and Mountain time zones.

(1) Background: Although the current literature shows that daylight saving time (DST) may play a role in human health and behavior, this topic has been poorly investigated with reference to Obstetrics. The aim of this case–control study was to evaluate whether DST may influence the number of spontaneous deliveries. (2) Methods: A low-risk pregnancy cohort with spontaneous onset of labor (n = 7415) was analyzed from a single Italian region for the period 2016–2018. Primary outcome was the number of spontaneous deliveries. Secondary outcomes were: gestational age at delivery, type and time of delivery, use of analgesia, birth weight, and 5-min Apgar at delivery. We compared the outcomes in the two weeks after DST (cases) to the two weeks before DST (controls). (3) Results: Data showed no significant difference between the number of deliveries occurring before and after DST (Chi-square = 0.546, p = 0.46). Vaginal deliveries at any gestational age showed no statistical difference between the two groups (Chi-square = 0.120, p = 0.73). There were no significant differences in the secondary outcomes, as well. (4) Conclusions: DST has neither a significant impact on the number of deliveries nor on the obstetric variables investigated by this study.

Introduction To date, evidence addressing the effects of Daylight Saving Time (DST) on traffic accidents is inconsistent and often limited by geographical heterogeneity in accident occurrence and follow-up duration. The DST spring transition is thought to acutely increase traffic accident rates by inducing modest levels of circadian disruption and ~1h of sleep deprivation. Our goal was to re-examine the link between spring DST and traffic accident rates, considering changes in DST timing, potential differences in fatal/total accident rates, both nation-wide and within two urban settings with distinct meteorological profiles. Methods We analyzed three US traffic accident data sources: (i) the Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS) database of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (fatal accidents since 1975); (ii) all police-recorded fatal and nonfatal accidents in Denver (2012-2018); (iii) all police-recorded fatal and nonfatal accidents in Seattle (2007-2018). We compared the number of accidents on Saturday, Sunday and Monday of the DST change weekend with corresponding Saturdays, Sundays and Mondays in the week before and after the DST spring transition, using two-tailed paired t-tests and mixed models accounting for potential accident rate changes over time. Additional analyses considered time-of-day of accident occurrence. Results Data on 1,874,672 accidents were available. We did not observe differences in fatal/non-fatal accident rates associated with the DST spring transition in neither of the datasets (p>0.10). Changes in timing of DST did not result in shifts of accident rates (p>0.10). Accident fatality, time-of-day, or geographical location did not influence the association between DST and accident rates. We replicated prior findings restricting FARS analyses to 1975-1995 (Varghuese & Allen, 2001), showing higher accident rates associated with the DST spring transition. Conclusion In this large study of traffic accidents, we did not observe evidence for an association between the spring DST transition and accident rates, despite being able to replicate prior positive findings in a smaller dataset. To better appreciate the potential burden of DST on human health, further, large-scale studies are necessary to detect this presumably small effect. Support (If Any) N/A

Iran is among the countries which change official time, every year according to their constitutions. Studies have shown an increase of incidence ratio (IR) of acute myocardial infarction by these time transitions. Despite annual time changes in Iran, there is no published data to prove this among the Iranian. This retrospective study examined the IR of patients with AMI, who were admitted to the Emergency Department (ED) of 5 teaching hospitals during the week just after the time transitions (observed period), with two weeks before and after the time transitions (expected period), both in spring and fall. In total, 11051 patients were admitted during the ten weeks (observed and expected), in both spring and fall time transitions. The IR of AMI during both observed and expected period did not show any significant difference (p > 0.05); however, the incidence of AMI was increased during the first week after the transition in spring (p > 0.05). Although the results of the present study did not prove the relation between time transitions and incidence of AMI, a slight increase existed for IR of AMI during three days after spring shift. This increase in IR of AMI can be due to Nowrooz, the national holidays which lasts four days after turning clocks forward in Iran.

Daylight savings time represents a public good with costs and benefits. We provide the first comprehensive examination of the welfare effects of the spring and autumn transitions for the UK and Germany. Using individual-level data and a regression discontinuity design, we estimate the effect of the transitions on life satisfaction. Our results show that individuals in both the UK and Germany experience deteriorations in life satisfaction in the first week after the spring transition. We find no effect of the autumn transition. We attribute the negative effect of the spring transition to the reduction in the time endowment and the process of adjusting to the disruption in circadian rhythms. The effects are particularly strong for individuals with young children in the household. We conclude that the higher the shadow price of time, the more difficult is adjustment. Presumably, an increase in flexibility to reallocate time could reduce the welfare loss for individuals with binding time constraints.

Introduction Daylight saving time (DST) imposes a twice yearly 1h change in local clock time. Although it may seem a small adjustment, there is increasing awareness of the potential acute and long term effects at the individual and population level. Several studies have shown detrimental effects on sleep patterns, but mostly focusing on adults. Only one study has looked at the effect in infants’ sleep of change from standard time (ST) to DST, reporting negative effects. One study limitation was the reliance on parental reports of infant sleep. In addition, effects of the change from DST to ST are unknown. We hypothesize that the change from DST to ST would lead to earlier rise times, leading to sleep loss in the week following the change. Methods Caregivers of 510 children ages 3-24 mos (M=9.8 mos) tracked their child’s sleep using Nanit baby-monitor. Sleep metrics analyzed were: Nighttime sleep duration (NSD) and midpoint, number of night-wakings and sleep efficiency. Wilcoxon rank sum tests compared the average of each sleep metric for the week preceding the time change (Oct 31st-Nov 4th 2022, Baseline) with sleep metrics for each night of the following week (Nov 7-11 2022, post-DST week). Analyses were repeated stratifying by age group (4-6,7-12 and 13-24 months). Results After the time change, there was no change in NSD or sleep efficiency. There was a significant decrease in the number of night-wakings for infants 3-6 months, with an average of 0.5 fewer wakings per night compared to Baseline (Baseline mean=5 wakings). Midpoint was significantly earlier for all ages by an average of 10min, every day of the post-DST week. Conclusion The return to ST affected infants’ sleep midpoint. Observed effects were minor compared to those reported in previous literature for the ST to DST change, in line with other fields like cardiovascular health. This easier adjustment could be attributed to the fact that during DST there is an increased mismatch between body clock and social clock time, thus infants more readily adjust to a return to ST which minimizes this mismatch. Support (if any) This research was supported by Nanit

Abstract Daylight saving time (DST) refers to the practice of advancing clock time by 1 h each spring, with a return (setting back) to standard time (ST) each fall. Numerous sleep and circadian societies other than the Sleep Research Society have published statements in support of permanent ST, and permanent ST has also received support from multiple medical societies and organizations. This perspective discusses the positive and negative health and economic consequences of permanent DST, permanent ST, and maintaining the status quo (DST for part of the year). After a thorough review of the existing literature, the SRS advocates the adoption of permanent ST.

The Post's Dan Diamond explains the short-lived permanent daylight saving time in the 1970s and why it is so hard to change the system.