5 Tips to Help Adjust to Daylight Saving
This weekend on March 14 was daylight saving time and clocks turned ahead one hour. If your family wasn't properly prepared, the time change can negatively affect productivity, concentration, and both physical and mental health.
The impact is even more significant for kids and teenagers because their bodies and minds are still growing, and because sleep directly impacts their academic performance, says Patrick Quinn, a parenting expert at Brainly.
To help families adjust their bodies and sleep schedules to the time, Quinn has shared these top five tips:
Start getting to bed earlier.
You can ease your body into the time change by starting your nighttime routine 15 minutes earlier in the days leading up to the start of daylight saving time. This can be especially helpful for small children, who often feel the effects of the time change more than adults.
Then, turn your clocks forward Saturday morning instead of Sunday morning. Live your day based on that schedule. Allowing two days, rather than a single day before the start of the week can ease the biological transition (your circadian rhythm) to the new time.
Our sleep cycle and our eating patterns affect each other, so on the days around the time change, eat at the same time or even a little early.
Be mindful of what and when you eat and drink.
Our sleep cycle and our eating patterns affect each other, so on the days around the time change, eat at the same time or even a little early.
Also, try to eat more protein instead of carbohydrates. (This might seem like good everyday advice, but it’s even more important during time changes.) Avoid the pasta in lieu of fish, nuts, and other sources of protein for dinner this week.
Wake up at the same time each morning to keep your sleep cycle more regular. This means even on weekends! Although sleeping in can help you feel more rested in the short-term, it causes difficulties falling asleep and waking up during the week.
Be consistent.
Wake up at the same time each morning to keep your sleep cycle more regular. This means even on weekends! Although sleeping in can help you feel more rested in the short-term, it causes difficulties falling asleep and waking up during the week.
In fact, getting out of bed at the same time every morning is the single best way to improve sleep and wake functioning. A consistent sleep schedule based on a single pre-determined rise time will help you feel more rested throughout the entire year. Getting up at the same time is far more important than going to bed at the same time, though consistency on bedtime is certainly also important.
On the first Sunday of daylight saving time, get up at your regular time whether you had a good night’s sleep or not. And avoid taking a nap if it’s not part of your typical routine.
An hour before bedtime, put your phone, computer, or tablet away. Electronics’ high-intensity light hinders melatonin, a hormone that triggers sleepiness. The light stimulates your brain and makes sleep difficult the same way sunlight does.
Practice healthy habits before bedtime.
An hour before bedtime, put your phone, computer, or tablet away. Electronics’ high-intensity light hinders melatonin, a hormone that triggers sleepiness. The light stimulates your brain and makes sleep difficult the same way sunlight does.
Also, turn off the television and pick up a book. Take a warm shower. Dim the lights. Relax.
One great perk about spring and daylight saving time is that there is more sunlight in the evenings. Enjoy the natural lighting outside or indoors with your curtains open. Sunlight helps naturally reset your body clock.
Enjoy the longer evenings.
One great perk about spring and daylight saving time is that there is more sunlight in the evenings. Enjoy the natural lighting outside or indoors with your curtains open. Sunlight helps naturally reset your body clock.
Letting natural light come into your bedroom in the morning also aids in greater alertness upon awakening.
For more helpful tips for families, visit www.brainly.com
For more helpful tips for families, visit www.brainly.com
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