I just saw on CNN's crawl that there are fewer heart attacks the Monday morning after time "falls back" at the end of daylight saving. There's also a slight increase in heart attacks the Monday morning after we "spring forward." In Sweden, anyway. The effect is small but statistically significant.
That's pathetic. We're all so rushed and stressed (even in Sweden) that our hearts slurp up that one extra hour of sleep like desert plants in a rare rain. It always does feel like a disproportionately great luxury, doesn't it? Balm for that feeling that there are never enough hours in the day. And some consolation for the winter dark's sudden pounce. The two things together are like a hibernation starter kit.
American scientists responded that no one should conclude that one hour of sleep one day of the year is a matter of life and death. But "there is growing evidence that chronic sleep deprivation has a negative impact on the heart." News I should take to heart.
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