Daylight saving time ends Sunday

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The impending time change can be a difficult adjustment, especially for young kids who aren’t on a strict sleep schedule. Waterdown mom of three, Jelissa Buchanan, says she expects her kids to wake her nice and early Sunday morning, “the kids wake up around anywhere between 6 o’clock and 6:30, so it would be 5 o’clock or 5:30.” Because the circadian rhythms that dictate our sleep cycle are so tied to light and dark, “falling back” an hour is disorienting. Sleep consultant and founder of Wee Sleep, Janey Reilly, says sleep loss caused by the time change can be very disruptive for kids, “cranky, temper tantrums, whiny, needy, all those sorts of things.”

She recommends parents give their kids a three day grace period to adjust back to standard time by splitting the difference of the newly gained hour, “bedtime if it falls at 7, we’re going to do a 6:30 bedtime. We’re going to do that for three days following the time change.” On the fourth day, she says kids should be ready to return to their normal bedtimes and wake times. Because the time change also robs us of evening sunlight, Reilly recommends squeezing in some outdoor activity immediately after school so kids are tired by the time they go to bed.

Brighter mornings and dimmer evenings can also make city streets more dangerous, according to trauma doctor, Ahmed Al Jabri at Hamilton General Hospital, “We notice that there’s an increase trend of pedestrians being hit by cars because they are invisible.” He says drivers are not used to returning home from work when it’s already dark out and may not be as mindful of pedestrians as they should be. High glare in the morning can also obscure people on foot. Al Jabri suggests drivers be ultra vigilant and pedestrians wear bright clothing and put down their smartphones while they’re crossing the street.