Permanent daylight saving time? Scientists have a better idea

Updated Oct. 10, 2026, 9:28 a.m. ET

Daylight is already fading, and soon Americans will set back the clocks too. But this year political support is building for doing away with seasonal time changes by switching to permanent daylight saving time.

That would be a mistake, scientists say.

A new report echoes a chorus of scientific research saying that permanent standard time is the best solution for eliminating the dreaded twice-yearly clock change.

You might enjoy daylight saving time for its later sunsets throughout the year. But standard time’s earlier sunrises are more in line with our body clocks, leading to better sleep and mood, authors of the report say.

For now, most of the nation is scheduled to set the clocks back Nov. 1, ending daylight saving time and returning to standard time. (All states except Arizona and Hawaii currently follow daylight saving time.)

The new analysis reviewed evidence on the public health implications of establishing permanent standard time and permanent daylight saving time. Though the analysis is Canadian, co-author Ralph Mistlberger said it can be applied to the United States and much of the research reviewed was conducted in the United States.

“Morning light is the primary environmental time cue that aligns our biological clocks to local time. If morning light is delayed, our clocks and all the rhythms they control are delayed,” Mistlberger told USA TODAY in an email.

Both choices have trade-offs. According to the analysis, permanent daylight saving time keeps evenings lighter, which may support recreation, social activity, commuting and some economic activity. But it also pushes sunrise an hour later, leaving more people waking, traveling to school and commuting to work in darkness during the coldest winter days.

Permanent standard time, on the other hand, preserves more morning light and better aligns clock time with human circadian biology, although evenings become darker earlier.

Politicians rally behind permanent daylight saving time

For years, the beginning and end of daylight saving time has renewed calls to end time changes, leaving two choices: permanent daylight saving time or permanent standard time. Politicians, with the loud backing of President Donald Trump, have set their sights on making daylight saving time permanent.

The Sunshine Protection Act, which would make daylight saving time permanent and eliminate the spring and fall clock changes, passed the House earlier this summer by a bipartisan vote. But the legislation still must clear the Senate and be signed by Trump before it can take effect.

Even with support from Trump and lawmakers in both parties, Senate Majority Leader John Thune has questioned whether enough senators support the proposal to move it across the finish line.

Iterations of this legislation have failed to come to fruition in previous years. As it stands, no state can adopt permanent daylight saving time unless Congress passes a law to authorize it, but some states have adopted or considered legislation to make the switch if or when such a law passes. There are nineteen states waiting for such authorization, including some that would only make the switch if neighboring states also do, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.

Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Arkansas, has been a vocal critic of the legislation. The last time the nation tried permanent daylight saving time in the ’70s, it quickly changed course – children walked to school with flashlights and commuter trains were delayed, Cotton said in a speech opposing the Sunshine Protection Act in 2025.

Trump on Oct. 3, in a push for the Sunshine Protection Act, posted what he said was Cotton’s personal cellphone number to pressure him to support the legislation.

“Arkansans don’t want their kids going to school in the pitch dark, and I’ll always put Arkansas first,” Cotton said afterward.

Sen. Rick Scott, R-Florida, who sponsored the Sunshine Protection Act, has a different perspective: “For many Americans, an extra hour of daylight means more time to play outside with their kids, walk their dog, or spend time with neighbors,” Sen. Scott said in a Sept. 7 post on X.

“Americans work hard, and they deserve more free time to enjoy all the outdoors has to offer,” he said.

Why experts say standard time is better for your health

Twice-yearly time changes are associated with negative health impacts, and springing forward is generally worse on our bodies than falling back, Erik Herzog, a professor of biology and neuroscience at Washington University in St. Louis, previously told USA TODAY.

The shift in spring is associated with an increase in heart attacks, and car accident rates also go up for a few days after, he said. Ending time changes would be good for health, but it matters which year-round time is chosen.

According to the authors of the analysis published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal on Oct. 5, permanent daylight saving time would have a negative effect on the body’s circadian clock. Especially vulnerable are children and teenagers, they said. As young people go through puberty, their sleep timing naturally shifts later but they still have to wake up early for school.

“Our biological clocks need morning light to stay synchronized with the 24-hour day,” Mistlberger said. “Permanent daylight saving time moves that light an hour later just when winter mornings are already darkest.”

Shifting light toward the evening, while favorable for later social activities or businesses attracting customers later, makes it easier on the body to stay up late and harder to wake up early, but morning commitments don’t change. That creates what’s known as “social jet lag,” Mistlberger said. Social jet lag and sleep restrictions can result in a wide range of health impacts such as chronic illnesses, mood disorders and even cancer, he said.

Shifting morning light later means people get up and get ready for work in the dark. Children walk to school or wait for school buses with low visibility.

According to a September report by K12, if permanent daylight saving time were adopted, 94 of the nation’s 100 largest school districts would have students heading to school in the dark each winter morning. On average, there would be 117 mornings where students would commute in the dark, compared with 77 in the current time changes and just 35 if permanent standard time were adopted, K12 found.

“The attraction of permanent daylight saving time is easy to understand. People like more light after work and school,” says Dr. Patrick Baylis, associate professor at the Vancouver School of Economics at the University of British Columbia. “But those evening benefits have to be weighed against evidence linking later solar time with less sleep, lower productivity, and worse educational outcomes.”