On Nov. 3 at 2 a.m., the clocks were set back an hour as daylight saving ended. Most people like to say this time change adds an hour of sleep, which is preferred, especially by students who don’t like losing the hour in the spring.

 

Even though it seems like there is an added hour to students’ sleep, this is a misconception. The change in time doesn’t add anything, it just changes the schedule. Circadian rhythms are now shifted, which affects the next morning and will affect the body for about a week until the body gets back on track. Just like jet lag, the time change has a large effect on sleep.

 

Taking naps is one way to help your body during the time it takes to get the body’s biological clock on the same clock your mind is already on. This may seem impossible for college students, especially when they are trying to find the time to nap in between a day of classes and starting various homework assignments.

 It is important to be cautious of when you take that seemingly life-saving nap. According to NBC News, taking a nap in the middle of the day will cause the body to not be ready to go to sleep during the normal bedtime. This nap, bedtime catastrophe will result in an unhealthy sleeping schedule that will take a while to get back to normal.

 

It is going to start getting darker earlier which can also have an impact on sleep. When it is dark at 5 p.m., the body is going to get confused, especially in the beginning. This may make students feel more tired and could cause them to take a nap.

 

This is not a good idea but in contrast, overindulgence on caffeine is not the answer either. With the messed up circadian rhythm, caffeine at 3 p.m. may look amazing but it will continue to screw up students’ actual bedtimes.

 

It takes time, but the body will be able to reset and get accustomed to the change, so it won’t even feel like it happened. So hang in there and fight the urges to take a nap or drink caffeine late in the afternoon, because it will get better.

 

In the meantime, enjoy these facts from MentalFloss.

1. Benjamin Franklin suggested the idea of daylight saving to save money on candles, but it could have just been a joke poking fun at the French.

2. Daylight saving became very popular in the 1970s during the Energy Crisis, when it helped save money during the oil embargo of 1973.

3. Daylight savings could actually be decreasing crime. In 2015, daily robberies dropped by 7% after the change in time in the spring. This could be because it stays light out longer, which deters robbers.

4. The time changes at 2 a.m. because it was decided that most people would be asleep and would not realize the shift.

5. The end of daylight savings used to be the last Sunday of October. However, it was pushed to November after the candy industry lobbied for the extension due to this change being at the same time as Halloween.

6. Benjamin Franklin may have suggested it in 1784, but an entomologist was the first person to bring daylight saving to people’s attention. It all stemmed from his frustration around the sun setting too early in the summer when he was looking for bugs. Springing the clocks forward during the spring would give more daylight for bug hunting after his day job of working in a post office.