“When there is a shift in the season and our access to daylight, our bodies struggle to adjust to the new light and time frame.”
Suicide
Building from the link between the clocks changing and depression, research has shown an increased rate in suicide at the same time. One paper, published in Sleep and Biological Rhythms, looked at Australian suicide data from 1971 to 2001. It found an increase in suicides both at the start and end of daylight savings.
“The results confirm that male suicide rates rise in the weeks following the commencement of daylight saving, compared to the weeks following the return to eastern standard time and for the rest of the year,” it says.
“After adjusting for the season, prior to 1986 suicide rates in the weeks following the end of daylight saving remained significantly increased compared to the rest of autumn.
