Chantzy

A one page letter written by 6 researchers outlining possible health consequences of switching to daylight savings time an advocating for permanent standard time, dated October 2019

Letter signatories Myriam Juda, PhD Research Associate, Sleep and Circadian Neuroscience Lab, Psychology, SFU Ralph Mistlberger, PhD Professor, Psychology, SFU Director, Sleep and Circadian Neuroscience Lab, Psychology, SFU Andrea Smit, PhD, on behalf of the Canadian Society for Chronobiology (CSC) Member of the CSC Board of Directors Najib Ayas, PhD, MD, MPH, FRCPC Associate Professor of Medicine, Sleep Disorders Program Faculty of Medicine, The University of British Columbia Judy Village, PhD, CCCPE President, Association of Canadian Ergonomists Adjunct Professor, School of Population and Public Health, UBC Raymond Lam, PhD, MD, FRCPC Professor and BC Leadership Chair in Depression Research Associate Head of Research, Psychiatry, University of British Columbia Director Mood Disorders Center, Djavad Mowafaghian Center for Brain Health Executive Director, APEC Digital Hub for Mental Health

Open letter to the BC Gov in 2019 by BC researchers outlining potential health harms of a switch to permanent DST. Apparently this letter was ignored

💯 thank you!

really tired of conversations about how we need to get people to spend more time offline that don't acknowledge that one of the reasons people ARE online is their access needs aren't being met in physical spaces. This is especially true for queer people and disabled people.

I'm limiting replies because I know everyone has "feelings" but I care about facts. One option will lead to circadian disruption which leads to worse mental health outcomes, insomnia, hypertension, road accidents, suicides, metabolic impacts, possibly also cancer

Excerpt from news release Evidence suggests there are many benefits to ending the seasonal time change, including: • more consistency and fewer disruptions to sleep patterns, school schedules, and daily routines • more usable light in the evenings in winter, allowing more leisure time, participation in outdoor activities and consumer activity

I think we know why they selected the option that is worse for our health. Follow the money 💰

In the news release BC Gov put out announcing the switch to permanent daylight savings time, they cite a Stanford Medicine report to back up their decision, but the report actually says the opposite, that permanent standard time is better

news.gov.bc.ca/releases/202...

Regardless of how people "feel" about the change, I think decisions should be based purely on evidence. Ignoring science in favour of "feelings" is not smart government.

It would be great timing to set up an environmental epi study on this change. Maybe I'll try reaching out to Dr. Hall in this video to see if she knows of anyone studying this 🤔

Longitude Position in a Timezone and Cancer Risk in the United States Circadian disruption is a probable human carcinogen. From the eastern to western border of a timezone, social time is equal whereas solar time is progressively delayed, producing increased discrepancies between individuals’ social and biological ...

I'm guessing it would depend on where you are situated. Vancouver is a major city on the western edge of pacific time zone. Here's a fun study (sarcasm)

pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC...

Everyday it's like some version of *wake up*

*checks how our governments are trying to slowly kill us by not following science-aligned policy*

logs off

Permanent daylight time will cause sleep problems, B.C. expert says While an end to the hassle of changing the clocks back and forth twice a year is welcome news to many, a sleep expert has health concerns about B.C.’s decision to remain on daylight time year-round.

Permanent daylight time will cause sleep problems, B.C. expert says.

Not ideal alongside the cognitive impacts many are already experiencing from long COVID

www.ctvnews.ca/vancouver/ar...

POSITION STATEMENTS | Save Standard Time Numerous nonprofits and newspapers have statements for Standard Time.

I'm wondering who was consulted for this from a science standpoint and why your gov't chose to ignore the voices of all these sleep experts and scientific bodies, including the American Medical Association, who call for permanent standard time?

savestandardtime.com/statements/

This info isn't accurate. Studies of areas that have implemented DST show avg nightly sleep loss of 30 mins and no extra sunlight. I guess we just sit around and watch how sleep deprivation plays out at the population level

Neurodevelopmental consequences for the Covid generation, Higher depression, Insomnia, Worse than the flu, and more Bonus College students mostly bounced back

Covid consequences: Depression, insomnia, decreased cognitive skills, brain inflammation and more

open.substack.com/pub/johndupu...

Newspaper clipping from “The Courier–Journal” of Louisville, Kentucky. Published on March 1, 1942. A letter to the editor.

Permanent Daylight Saving Time: “We are groggy, sleepy, tired, and our work is harder, because we have lost the most important hours of sleep.” —On this day in 1942.

Nice! Yeah lower mainlanders are effed!

Apparently Horgan's popularity poll on the BC time change this didn't even include an option for permanent standard time, just DST and the status quo. A bit rigged!

💯 this!

Same guy, same week.

Headband for fun :-)
It's a podcast series on translational medicine and I can share with you once it's out in a month or two!

Population level public health policy should be based on evidence-based decision making, not "vibes" or popularity polls

Why Daylight Savings Time is actually bad for our mental and physical health - Djavad Mowafaghian Centre for Brain Health | DMCBH It’s that time of year when we “fall back” and turn our clocks back one hour. With recent discussions by politicians lobbying for permanent Daylight

www.centreforbrainhealth.ca/news/why-day...

This image describes the Canadian COVID Forecast for the fourteen-day period between Feb 28 - Mar 13, 2026, which is produced by COVID-19 Resources Canada. British Columbia's COVID Forecast outlook is MODERATE [no change] with a COVID INDEX SCORE of 4.4 About 1 of every 264 people is infected. Estimated infections this week: 24,800-30,700 What these numbers mean: MODERATE 1-5, HIGH 5-10, VERY HIGH 10-15, SEVERE >15 COMPARED TO THE LOWEST POINT IN THE COVID PANDEMIC IN CANADA How much higher are key indicators compared to the lowest point in the COVID pandemic in Canada? Waste water, infections: MODERATE; 4.2X higher Long COVID: HIGH; 5.4X higher Hospitalizations: MODERATE; 4.9X higher Deaths: MODERATE; 4.2X higher HOW TO HELP: EVERYONE: UPDATE vaccines every 6 months WEAR N95-type masks Who is HIGH RISK? People 60 and older, babies < 1 year, pregnant ALL AGES: immunocompromised OR medically at-risk OR no vaccine or infection in the last 6 months Recommendations are based on the COVID-19 Risk Index from the Peterborough ON Public Health Unit COVID-19 Resources Canada is a grassroots organization of volunteer scientists supporting Canadian COVID responses. Sources, data and methods for the COVID Index are available at www.Covid19Resources.ca

Canadian COVID Forecast Feb 28 - Mar 13, 2026

BRITISH COLUMBIA

MODERATE [no change]

About 1 of every 264 people is infected.

Compared to lowest point of pandemic in Canada:

-Infections: 4.2 x higher
-Long COVID: 5.4 x higher
-Hospitalizations: 4.9 x higher
-Deaths: 4.2 x higher

B.C.'s premier is celebrating the move to permanent daylight time. Others aren't so sure Critics of the change argue that it’s not in sync with the Pacific states in the U.S., it’s bad for sleep patterns, and it will be more dangerous for kids walking and riding their bikes to school and ...

"This is a major experiment for their population, and it’s not a good experiment,” Dr. Wendy Hall said in an interview on Monday."

Hmmm seems familiar

www.timescolonist.com/local-news/p...

Long COVID — Here’s What To Know And The Challenges Ahead Six years after the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, the virus still exists. A public health expert explains what Long COVID is, and the challenges associated with it.

Explicitly capitalist media again shares a new piece that Long COVID is concerning, has no cure and again, embarrassingly, is doing better public health comms about this than most public health orgs. www.forbes.com/sites/omeraw...

Sign the e-petition for Permanent Standard Time if you're in Canada 🍁 and interested in aligning our clocks with the best available scientific evidence on health & circadian rhythms

www.ourcommons.ca/petitions/en...

Also worried about the association between cancer and circadian disruption, but agree switching sucks!

It may not be better for people with mental health or pre existing conditions like hypertension/diabetes since circadian disruption is linked to worse outcomes in those groups & COVID is surely adding synergies 😢

I don't think it's about night owl. Many people with depression or bipolar are night owls and can be quite harmed by this policy

Sunset time and the economic effects of social jetlag: evidence from US time zone borders The rapid evolution into a 24 h society challenges individuals’ ability to conciliate work schedules and biological needs. Epidemiological research su…

Studies using time zone borders show later sunset timing reduces sleep & is associated with worse cardiometabolic health. Permanent DST will push all of B.C. toward this 'social jet lag'

Really wish our govt would just follow evidence

www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...