Warum die Sommerzeit für immer enden sollte
The "Normal time” or ‘winter time’ is better suited to the usual sleeping and waking times, as psychologist Ralf Buchstaller from TÜV NORD explains.
The "Normal time” or ‘winter time’ is better suited to the usual sleeping and waking times, as psychologist Ralf Buchstaller from TÜV NORD explains.
On the night of October 27, the clocks will be set back by one hour. This marks the end of summer time: it gets dark earlier in the evening and light earlier in the morning. Since 1980, Germans have been changing their clocks twice a year: in March they switch to summer time and in the fall back to standard time, colloquially known as winter time. The changeover to summer time is actually intended to save energy thanks to the longer light hours in the evening. However, as early as 2009, the Federal Environment Agency reported that this was not worthwhile. Although there is less light in the evenings in summer, there is more heating in the mornings in spring and fall.
Nevertheless, summer time is popular here in Germany - people enjoy the long summer evenings. However, they are not happy about the time change: three out of four Germans would like to abolish it, as reported by the YouGov 2023 survey institute. The majority want to live with summer time all year round. However, most experts are against it, reports Ralf Buchstaller from the Medical-Psychological Institute of TÜV NORD in Hamburg. “With year-round summer time, it would also be dark longer in the mornings in winter. And that means we would miss out on the most important natural stimulant, sunlight.”
People find the time change in March difficult
However, continuing to switch between summer and winter time would not be a good solution either. The time change in March is a particular problem for many people, as a team led by German chronobiologist Thomas Kantermann discovered in 2007. The group analyzed data from around 55,000 people and found that the internal clock often remains in the old rhythm for weeks - in other words, it is “behind” when measured against summer time. As a result, people don't wake up in the morning and don't get tired in the evening, but still have to get up an hour earlier on weekdays. This is particularly bad for night owls, as they already have problems getting out of bed in the morning.
So it's no wonder that Germans' life satisfaction temporarily drops in the week following the time change in March. But it's not just subjective well-being that suffers. Many studies have observed an increased risk of traffic accidents at the beginning of summer time. One study counted an average of around 30 percent more traffic fatalities in around 50 Spanish cities on the day after the time change in March. The researchers calculated that the time change was responsible for 40 deaths in these 50 cities alone over the course of around 25 years. In the fall, however, the increase was only around half as high.
The consequences of the time change in the fall are highly controversial. The clocks are also changed twice a year in most regions of the North American continent, but US statistics did not reveal an increase in traffic fatalities after the change to winter time. In spring, on the other hand, fatal traffic accidents also increased in the USA after the changeover, particularly in the mornings. The researchers explain this with increased tiredness and longer periods of darkness in the morning - when traffic density is at its highest. It is not only in road traffic that the risk to life and limb increases after the time change. Forensic medicine at the University of Frankfurt also observed an average increase in deaths due to suicides and heart attacks over a decade. A review from Italy also showed that the risk of heart attacks increases after the time change in spring.
Daylight saving time helps the internal clock
“There is a lot to be said for abolishing daylight saving time and keeping standard time all year round,” says Ralf Buchstaller from TÜV NORD. It helps the internal clock to adapt to the usual sleeping and waking times that are dictated by work and school. “If it were always summer time, it would be light too long in the evening in summer and dark too long in the morning in winter,” explains the psychologist.
Two countries have tried it and given it up again. “In 1968, the United Kingdom switched to permanent summer time, and Russia tried it in 2011,” says the psychologist. Both ended the experiment after three years because of the long hours of darkness in the morning. Similar consequences could be expected in northern Germany. As a study from Göttingen calculated, the sun would not rise until around 9.30 a.m. for a good month in Hamburg. On average, there would be not just two, but a good four months a year in Germany when it would only get light after 8 o'clock.
“In winter, morning light makes it easier to get up and in summer, dusk makes it easier to fall asleep,” explains Ralf Buchstaller. This is particularly important for night owls. Because they get tired late in the evening, they enjoy long summer evenings. But the long hours of light keep them awake even longer in the evening - so that their internal clock is even less in tune with their usual daily routine. Above all, however, they lack the light in the morning to wake up in winter. “This doesn't just apply to night owls,” says the psychologist. “We all need daylight in the morning after getting up. This brings our internal clock into the right rhythm and ensures better sleep in the evening.”
Central European Time (CET) applies in Germany. Alongside Western and Eastern European Time, it is one of the three European time zones. Western European Time corresponds to “Universal Time” (UT), formerly known as “Greenwich Mean Time” (GMT), because it refers to the local time at zero longitude, which by convention runs through the observatory in the London district of Greenwich. Central European standard time is one hour ahead of world time, while Eastern European standard time is two hours ahead. Another hour is added during summer time: since 1996, all EU member states and a few neighboring countries have set their clocks one hour forward at the end of March and one hour back at the end of October.
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