Daylight savings time arrives Sunday -- start practicing

6:25 PM daylight savings No Comments

Daylight savings time is almost here. Yes, much of the nation switches over to daylight savings time at 2 a.m. Sunday. Sure, folks can enjoy a bit of lingering daylight before turning on the TV after dinner. But some research suggests the time change may not be all it’s cracked up to be. It might – just might, we’re not saying it does – increase your risk of having a heart attack or attempting suicide.

More to the issue perhaps is that the mornings will be darker. L.A. Times staff writer Shari Roan examined the effect of this a few years ago when the time change was moved ahead by three weeks.

She wrote: "Early morning light sets the body's clock to gear up for the day's activities, but the later sunrise in the winter -- and a society based on the clock instead of nature -- causes a delay in the normal cycle."

The University of Connecticut Health Center offers these tips for managing your sleep and life this weekend – and the rest of the year.

--Practice. --Take a nap on Saturday – but not close to bedtime.
After the time change, go to bed at your usual time – even if you don’t feel sleepy

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Most Hoosiers getting used to Daylight Saving switch

6:22 PM daylight savings No Comments

Indianapolis - Prepare to spring forward! Sunday morning marks the beginning of Daylight Saving Time, when clocks are pushed ahead one hour. Indiana adopted DST a few years ago.

Listen to his spring and summer plans and you'll realize, Dan Palo is what you might call a golf enthusiast.

"I'm one of those people that want to get their money's worth, so that's that much more golf I can play and means that much more bang for my buck," he said.

Also profiting from changing the clocks is Celadon Trucking.

"It has reduced the number of mistakes we were making," said Stephen Russell, Celadon Trucking.

Russell was referring to simple things like confusing drop-off and pick up times. Now, with Indiana in step with the rest of the country, the Indianapolis-based transportation company is prospering even more.

"We have achieved growth and part of that growth achievement is because of daylight saving time," said Russell.

In the past, Indiana was one of just three states were clocks were never touched. That changed in 2005 with the adoption of DST. Now Hoosiers lose an hour of sleep in the spring and gain an hour of sunlight in the evening.

Adopting DST was a huge campaign issue for Gov. Mitch Daniels. He gave Stephen Russell a Sagamore of the Wabash for his efforts in pushing for the change.

"The real issue was the economic impact on the state," said the governor.

While there are no hard numbers to show that impact, Celadon has added 800 workers and now employs 4,000 in North America.

While most Hoosiers have grown accustomed to the time change, many feel the state should be in the Central, not Eastern Time Zone. One group is pushing for that change.

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