4 minSociety
Doctor shares six ways to protect sleep as clocks fall back
A California physician and a New York sleep specialist outline steps to ease the transition when clocks turn back and protect sleep and health through the darker months.
Turning clocks back at the end of daylight saving time has been linked to difficulty falling and staying asleep, and ongoing sleep loss can take a toll on health. Physicians say small changes to routine before and after the switch can ease the adjustment.
While some research has suggested the fall time change could bring certain cardiovascular benefits, the abrupt loss of evening sunlight can suppress serotonin and melatonin production, which may lead to a depressed mood, according to Dr. John La Puma, a California physician and expert in nature-based medicine. He noted that the body's internal clock does not automatically follow the clock on the wall. "When the clocks change, your body clock is still on the old time," he told Fox News Digital. "So, for about a week, you wake up an hour early. You get hungry early. You feel sleepy early. It gets dark by five."
To smooth the transition, La Puma recommends shifting the day in small steps before the clocks change. People can move bedtime, meals and wake-up time later in increments of about 15 minutes. For someone who normally goes to bed at 10 p.m., that could mean 10:15 p.m. on the Friday before the change and 10:30 p.m. on Saturday. Wake-up times and meals can shift by the same increments as schedules allow.
Because the time change falls on Halloween, Dr. Saema Tahir, a sleep medicine doctor in New York City, cautioned against staying up late and drinking on the assumption that the extra hour makes up for it. "Keep alcohol moderate, finish drinking a few hours before bed and avoid caffeine after early afternoon," she advised. "Alcohol makes you drowsy at first but breaks up sleep in the second half of the night. Caffeine stays in your system for hours. Together, they can leave you more tired on Sunday than you would be with no time change at all."
La Puma also stressed the importance of timing outdoor light exposure. He recommended getting outside in the afternoon, later in the day, noting that "late-day daylight is different than morning daylight. Late-day daylight tells your body the day is running long, and it shifts later." Tahir advised getting outdoor light within an hour of waking every day through the winter. "Light is the strongest signal the body clock gets," she told Fox News Digital. "Evening light pushes it later, which is the direction you need to go for 'fall back.' Morning light keeps it stable over the darker months and supports mood and daytime alertness."
Both experts pointed to bedtime routines and habits that support consistent sleep. La Puma suggested a relaxing ritual that signals to the brain and body that it is time to wind down, such as reading a paper book, sipping chamomile tea, taking a bath or using aromatherapy. Other recommendations include limiting caffeine after noon and stopping screen use at least an hour before bed. He warned that light from screens can suppress melatonin, and that night mode may not fully prevent this effect.
Once the clocks change, La Puma said, it is important to keep a regular wake-up time, including on weekends. "Pick one wake-up time and keep it every day, weekdays and weekends." He cited an eight-year study of about 60,000 people that linked consistent sleep and wake times to a 19 percent lower risk of death. "So, sleep and wake times have important effects on heart attack, stroke and cardiovascular mortality," he said.
Anyone experiencing persistent trouble falling or staying asleep, frequent daytime fatigue, or sleep loss that interferes with daily activities should contact a healthcare provider, according to the National Institutes of Health.
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