Amanda Bazil/ Staff Writer
Daylight Savings Time might officially be year-round in Florida, and as a result, hundreds of thousands of Floridians could face potential health problems and other issues.
As a bill that was signed by Gov. Rick Scott under the Sunshine Protection Act, it actually hasn’t taken effect yet as our state is waiting on Congress to change federal law to make this one possible, according to the Sun Sentinel.
So while we wait for this dreaded mistake to become reality, let us ponder on why this choice is a bad one.
Once this law is enacted is our body’s own natural clock, also known as circadian rhythm, the innate cycle responds to light and darkness in our environment, will be compromised, according to the National Institute of General Medical Sciences.
When it’s dark out, circadian rhythms help us sleep and when it’s light out, it helps us stay awake.
As handy as this natural clock is, if DST is enacted into law, then we risk disrupting our intrinsic clocks and causing problems that stem from sleep deprivation, according to timeanddate.com, one of the biggest time-zone related websites in the world.
Numerous problems can follow sleep deprivation; traffic accidents, as well as workplace injuries, are just the bare minimum. Losing out on that additional hour of sleep can also increase one’s susceptibility to getting heart attacks and even miscarriages in women.
Depression, a huge factor that has strong ties to sleep, will also be severely impacted if the time changes.
So if you guessed that your chances of suffering from depression increases, than you are absolutely right. Unfortunately bipolar disorder and seasonal affective disorder are right there with it.
Another area of concern is the vital welfare of our children.
While longer evening times allows for children to enjoy their afternoons and get the required exercise they need, the Florida Parent-Teacher Association questions children’s safety in the morning times as well.
The FPTA opposes the bill because children will be waiting for school buses or walking to school in the dark, according to the Sun Sentinel.
The issues DST provides are enough to cancel out the idea of making this a long-lasting implementation. It does nothing positive for our health, or our children’s safety.
In fact, the only argument for DST is its original creation, which was invented by Germany during World World I to conserve energy.
Studies are now showing that DST actually does nothing to conserve energy, but instead has more people using electricity due to having a longer afternoon, according to Live Science.
Many people aren’t even sure if Daylight Savings is something that really want, according to CNN.
CNN’s director of Polling Jennifer Agiesta offered an insight into what people thought, and the decisions were split.
From a CBS poll taken back in February 2015, 23 percent of adults prefer to have daylight savings all year-round, 23 percent prefer standard time full year and 48 percent prefer to switch back and forth between the two.
No matter what the real agenda behind wanting the times change may be for our state government, Floridians owe it to themselves to be responsible citizens and make a conscious choice on whether having DST year-round is worth it in the long run.
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