Summertime
Yes, the time change still exists: Daylight saving time begins at the weekend
A lot of work: All these clocks have to be turned back at the weekend. Then the time change 2022 is coming up
© Yui Mok / Picture Alliance
The time change is on. Winter time is over, summer time is in effect. On Sunday morning, that means sleeping an hour less, but after that it’s light longer in the evening for half a year. Why actually? And for how long?
In the spring we put the garden furniture IN FRONT the house, in winter we bring them BACK in the shed.
So far, so easy. So everyone can remember in which direction the clock has to be turned twice a year. Although many of the clocks that people use today no longer have to be set by hand. Smartwatches, smartphones and whatever else is so smart are changing on their own. radio clocks too. Only the analogue timepiece on the wrist has to be adjusted manually. The retro Casio, as well as grandma’s (or grandpa’s) old wall clock or grandfather clock too.
Now it’s going into a new round: Once again VOR, in the night to Sunday the clocks jump one hour forward at 2 a.m., are switched to 3 a.m. So the night is an hour shorter. It’s a good thing that for many people the alarm clock doesn’t ring on Sunday mornings.
Time change: Every second person suffers from it
How often the clock is changed twice a year is questionable. In 2018, a majority of EU citizens voted to abolish the time change. The Germans would – according to a representative survey in the past – prefer if summer time were preserved so that it stays light longer in the evenings. However, the desired time of the majority is not the “right” time. That would be winter time or the valid zone time, in our case Central European Time (CET). Daylight Saving Time was only enacted by law in 1980 and has been in effect ever since. Its history, however, goes back further in Germany. It was first used in Germany in 1916 as a war measure, the background was the same as later: the hope of saving energy on long summer evenings.
The abolition of the time change, however, is a long time coming. It was initially postponed until further notice against the background of the corona pandemic. This is bad news for all those who also suffer physically from the change between summer time and winter time – and according to a representative Forsa survey commissioned by the KKH commercial health insurance fund, that was every second person in Germany in 2021.
If you have problems with the time change, do not rely on caffeine
Similar to jet lag, those affected experience disturbed sleep patterns or well-being in the days after the time change. “Due to the time change, the internal clock and daily routine can be out of balance. This is particularly difficult for people who already suffer from sleep disorders or organic diseases or whose daily routine is not very flexible,” explains KKH doctor Sonja Hermeneit in a press release. And further: “Studies also show that in the first three days after a time change, there are 15 to 20 percent more hospital admissions for heart problems than the usual annual average. And there are eight to twelve percent more doctor visits during this time.”
However, the doctor advises against excessive use of coffee, energy drinks or other caffeinated beverages. These would only bring a short-term push. Exercise in the fresh air is better, as well as relaxation exercises, good sleep hygiene (more on this at Geo+) and rest breaks. “In this way, the internal clock and daily routine settle down again within a few days,” says Hermeneit.
If the corona pandemic allows it, the abolition of the time change could come back on the agenda. Until then, it is best to remember the sentence from the beginning.