You have probably seen or heard reminders online or on the radio to reset your clocks and move them forward by one hour as we approach Daylight Saving Time on Sunday, March 10, at 2 a.m. local time.

The additional daylight hour continues until November 3 of this year, when the clock is reset again.

While some prefer the extra sunshine hour, others like Erin Shawn believe that changing the clock twice a year is harmful to our health. She created a petition through change.org urging the federal government to stop Daylight Saving Time permanently, with nearly 75,000 Canadians having signed as of Friday.

Shawn told CTVNews.ca, "Moving the time forward by one hour is not the norm; it’s something people have to get used to." "This adjustment period feels like some kind of jet lag."

Shawn, who lives in Brampton, Ontario, but works in business development for a major food company based in Toronto, said Daylight Saving Time negatively affects our circadian rhythms— the natural cycle our bodies go through every 24 hours—and changing our internal clocks can worsen some illnesses, as well as disproportionately affect people suffering from depression and seasonal affective disorder.

The Canadian Sleep Society, a national organization promoting healthy sleep through research and medical professionals, agrees with Shawn.

The organization stated on its website that (Daylight Saving Time) triggers sleep deprivation at its start in spring but later imposes darkness during the summer, leading to delayed bedtime, which results in more sleep loss.

"Canadian children, students, and workers have to wake up in the dark and go to school or work without proper exposure to daylight. This challenges the primary role of morning light for daily alignment and sleep deficit."

The American Medical Association, the largest organization of physicians and medical students in the United States, agrees as well, and in November 2022, called on the U.S. government to end time changes and permanently switch to standard time.

The association wrote in a press release, "For far too long, we have changed our clocks in pursuit of daylight, risking public health and safety in the process," canceling the time changes in March and November would be welcome. It is time to see and acknowledge the health effects of clock adjustments."

In November 2020, the Ontario government passed the Time Amendment Act, introduced by former Ottawa West—Nepean MP Jeremy Roberts. However, the Ontario Attorney General said the government would not implement the law unless Quebec and New York State did the same.

After the legislation was passed, Roberts, who was defeated by NDP candidate Chandra Pasma in the 2022 Ontario general election, said one benefit of ending the twice-yearly change is boosting consumerism by giving residents more daylight hours in the evening.

Shawn said she feels frustrated by the push from businesses and politicians in both Canada and the United States who want longer days and for daylight time to be the permanent standard time.

She argues that no matter the financial gain, it is not worth the impact on people’s mental and physical health.

She said, "We’re supposed to wake up and sleep with the sun." "We need to protect our sleep and biological clock; making changes to the artificial clock does not contribute to people’s wellbeing."