Spring forward! As daylight saving time approaches this weekend, most folks are excited for more daylight when we get home from work or school to enjoy the nice spring weather.\u00a0 However, when clocks move forward in the spring we lose an hour \u2013 one precious hour of sleep!\u00a0 This leaves many feeling \u201cout of whack\u201d or unable to adjust for a few days, or even weeks.\u00a0 One hour of lost sleep can surely make us more tired, but some might not realize what that means for their safety and the safety of others.\u00a0 Slight changes in sleep patterns and circadian rhythms can alter our alertness, and in some cases, increase the number of auto crashes.<\/p>\n
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There have been multiple research studies performed which show that there is a very small but very significant increase of deaths in motor vehicle collisions on the Monday after we spring forward.\u00a0 There\u2019s also research which shows that the first six days following the change in time prove to be more dangerous on the road. \u00a0People are still adjusting to the shift in time on the Monday after, and it\u2019s been compared to the equivalent of suffering from jet lag.\u00a0 People are also adjusting to the darker morning commutes, and at the same time they are less alert due to sleep deprivation.\u00a0 Our driving skills aren\u2019t the only thing in danger, as it\u2019s also been reported there\u2019s an increase in workplace incidences in the days after we spring forward.<\/p>\n
The important lesson isn\u2019t that driving on the Monday after \u201cspringing forward\u201d is unusually dangerous, but rather that small decreases in our total amount of sleep can stress our bodies and cause incidents.\u00a0 What can you do to plan for Monday and the week following the time change?\u00a0 Go to bed early Saturday night, get enough sleep in the days before the clocks spring forward, and keep an eye out for fatigued drivers for the next few days.<\/p>\n
Happy \u201cspringing\u201d!<\/p>","protected":false},"author":18,"featured_media":0,"menu_order":0,"template":"","format":"standard","tags":[46],"blog_category":[884],"class_list":{"0":"post-9683","1":"blog","2":"type-blog","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"tag-uncategorized","7":"blog_category-auto-accident","8":"entry"},"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n