Iowans need to remember to push their clocks back an hour before heading to bed on Saturday night, and one expert says falling back can be very tough on our bodies, so we need to start prepping now.
Erica Neumeister, a nurse practitioner in sleep medicine at Emplify Health by Gundersen, says the end of daylight saving time can throw many things in our lives out of whack, with a higher risk for car accidents, depression and heart attacks.
“This can interrupt our circadian rhythm, which is the natural drive in our brain to stimulate the demand for wakefulness and sleep,” Neumeister says, “and this dysregulation in the time system in our brain can make it difficult to fall asleep for some people, stay asleep, or even wake up too early in the morning.”
Neumeister says it can take several weeks for our internal clocks to resynch, and the time shift can have longer-term impacts, as cardiovascular health, immune response, stress and mood can all be impacted.
“Within the first few weeks of the time change, Seasonal Affective Disorder can increase, a lack of motivation and energy is seen because it’s darker earlier in the evening,” Neumeister says. “Also, research studies have found within the first few days of the time change an increased risk of cardiovascular incidences, heart attacks, as well as motor vehicle accidents.”
For the next few weeks, Iowa drivers need to take special care to ensure they’re fully awake and staying vigilant.
“When we’re sleep deprived, our responses are shortened, so our ability to react quickly as well as to stay alert behind the wheel,” Neumeister says. “And then if we’re driving at different times of light exposure in the morning and at night, that definitely can affect our alertness, so we need to be aware of that.”
There are a few ways to make the transition easier, as she says it’s ideal for adults to continue getting seven to eight hours of sleep nightly.
“Several days before the time change, try to stay up potentially 15 to 30 minutes later, and then also timing other daily routines if possible, like meal times and exercise by 15 to 30 minutes to help resynchronize easier,” Neumeister says, “and then focusing on getting bright light in the morning and working on limiting any blue lights in the evening.”
Emplify Health by Gundersen has clinics in Calmar, Decorah, Fayette, Lansing, Postville and Waukon, and a hospital in West Union.
