Summer time: scientists demonstrate against the return of the measure

After being repealed for five years, daylight saving time may return. But the controversies surrounding the measure now go beyond energy savings and have reached the health field. A group of scientists linked to chronobiology — a science that studies rhythms and biological phenomena — signed a manifesto claiming that the time change can cause serious harm to health, which even outweighs the economic benefits.

The manifesto explains that human biological rhythms are related to the natural cycle of light and darkness. This cycle automatically regulates essential functions such as sleep, appetite and even mood. Daylight saving time, according to scholars, confuses this synchronization and forces the organism to readjust itself to a new “social time”.

Brasília’s public servant, Juliana Passos, agrees with the scientists. She doesn’t like change and says she has a lot of difficulty adapting.

“I feel that it has very relevant impacts on health issues, especially sleep issues. When we wake up very early it is still dark, sleeping is more complicated, because we are more exposed to light and heat and it takes us a while to relax at the end of the day.” The DF resident still says she feels more irritable at this time of year.

Health consequences

Even if the difference is only an hour, adaptation can be slow and more difficult for some people. According to experts, the change can cause the following problems:

• Sleep disorders
• Increase in adverse cardiovascular events
• Mental and cognitive disorders
• growth in the number of traffic accidents in the first days after the change.

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Among the arguments used by scientists in the manifesto is a 2017 study by the Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte (UFRN), which addressed the way we deal with the time transition.

The survey was based on online questionnaires and analyzed responses from more than 1,200 participants about usual sleeping and waking times, also asking about the arrival of daylight saving time. The conclusion was that more than half of those interviewed reported having some discomfort during the timetable.

The researchers highlight that the position expressed in the manifesto is based solely on scientific evidence, regardless of political inclinations, arguing that to preserve health and well-being, the ideal is to keep the change in schedules outside of plans.