Daylight Savings time tonight
Turns out that there is a curious medical statistic associated with Spring Ahead/Fall Behind.
From the
LA Times:
End of daylight saving time is good for the heart
Fall back? Researchers say there's a 5% drop in heart attack deaths after clocks are reset to standard time. But spring forward? That's bad for the pumper.
Turning your clock back one hour for the end of daylight saving time could do your own ticker some good.
Researchers have found a 5% drop in heart attack deaths and hospitalizations the day after clocks are reset each year to standard time, according to a study published today in the New England Journal of Medicine.
Unfortunately, the Swedish researchers also found that the onset of daylight saving time in the spring appears to increase the risk of heart attacks.
Physicians can now add daylight saving time to the list of seemingly mundane events that have an effect on the heart, said Dr. Ralph Brindis, a vice president of the American College of Cardiology who practices in Oakland. The risk also rises on holidays and anniversaries, though no one knows why, he said.
"This study is fascinating," Brindis said.
The culprit is probably sleep. Scientists have known that sleep deprivation is bad for the heart -- the body responds by boosting blood pressure, heart rate and the tendency to form dangerous clots -- but they didn't realize a single hour could have a measurable effect.
Curious!
Posted by DaveH at November 1, 2008 4:04 PM