There’s a bi-annual debate in America: What is to be done about daylight savings? The answer to that question got a little clearer last week when the House of Representatives passed the Sunshine Protection Act which would make daylight savings permanent. On The Drew Mariani Show, Drew talked to Dr. Lou Tartaglia, a sleep specialist about the bill.
“Daylight savings time is associated with public health and safety risks, cardiovascular events, mood disorders, and motor vehicle crashes,” he told Drew. Dr. Tartaglia is a Board Certified Sleep Medicine Specialist at the Toledo Clinic and a longtime opponent of daylight savings time. Tartaglia believes our bodies were meant to function with standard time.
“How did God set it up? He set it up with a clock in your brain that responds to sky blue light,” he said. Tartaglia explained that the blue light in the sky “penetrates the clouds” and onto cells on the retina. That exchange tells the body to “shut down the melatonin and reset your clock so the day starts.” Daylight savings, however, disrupts the normal circadian rhythm of the body.
The Medical Community
Tartaglia is not alone in his opposition. The American Academy of Sleep Medicine (AASM) released a statement after the bill’s passage condemning the legislation. The president of AASM, Dr. Fariha Abbasi-Feinberg said the House ignored “the overwhelming evidence supporting the health and safety benefits of permanent standard time and instead chose to force dark, dangerous mornings on millions of Americans who will suffer the effects.”
The Future of the Bill
Right now, bill has the backing of President Trump. In May he posted on social media in support of the proposed legislation, “I am going to work very hard to see The Sunshine Protection Act signed into Law. It’s time that people can stop worrying about the “Clock.”
Not all Republicans share the same enthusiasm. Last October, Arkansas senator Tom Cotton gave a speech opposing the bill. “By moving the clock back an hour in winter, permanent Daylight Savings Time would push winter sunrises to an absurdly late hour, depriving Americans of morning sunshine that’s essential for our safety and well-being,” he said.
For now, the Senate will decide whether or not it’s lights out for standard time.
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