Daylight Saving Time Disproportionately Impacts Communities Of Color

The current article by BET staff discusses how daylight savings can disproportionally affect members of the Black community. The Sleep Research Society and the American Academy of Sleep Medicine are advocating for the termination of the springtime daylight saving ritual and promoting the adaptation of permanent standard time.

Daylight-savings was first implemented by the government during World War I and World War II in an attempt to save energy for the war. Up until Congress changed it to start three weeks earlier and end one week later in 2007, Daylight savings time ran from April to mid-October in the United States.

Researchers have determined that daylight savings is associated with increased risks of health problems which seem to have a disproportionately higher negative impact on communities of color. In a statement to CNN health news, Chandra Jackson, a researcher and epidemiologist at the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, stated that "Poor sleep is associated with a number of poor health outcomes, including obesity, hypertension, type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and some cancers, including breast and colon. Many of these health outcomes are more prevalent in the Black population. Experimental as well as observational studies have linked sleep to these health outcomes. Therefore, sleep could be an important contributor.”

This past year the US senate unanimously approved the Sunshine Protection Act after speculation that ridding of daylight savings would have negative effects for airlines and dairy farmers. In order for daylight savings to be permanent, the Senate must also vote to approve the act when the decision is revisited and voted upon in November 2023.

References:

American Academy of Sleep. (2020, September 14). Eliminate daylight saving time. American Academy of Sleep Medicine. Retrieved December 9, 2022, from https://aasm.org/american-academy-of-sleep-medicine-calls-for-elimination-of-daylight-saving-time/

BET Staff. (2022, November 28). Daylight Saving Time Disproportionately Impacts Communities Of Color. BET. Retrieved December 9, 2022, from https://www.bet.com/article/mmspzr/daylight-saving-time-disproportionately-impacts-communities-of-color

Sleep Research Society. (2022, November 1). SRS position statement supports permanent standard time. Sleep Research Society. Retrieved December 9, 2022, from https://sleepresearchsociety.org/sleep-research-society-position-statement-supports-adoption-permanent-standard-time/?c