The authorities in Mexico plan to dissolve summertime forever, to reduce the 'fatigue' and 'irritability' of the population.
For years, it was argued that this was an accessible alternative to reduce electricity consumption. The logic was simple: if the clock was moved an hour earlier, the natural light of the Sun could be used a little more. However, the ecological argument that protected daylight saving time for decades has lost force . To such an extent that, recently, the Mexican authorities decided to dissolve this social convention once and for all .
The current president, Andrés Manuel López Obrador, made this resolution in order to avoid the "fatigue" and "irritability" that the population suffers when the time changes, according to what the president said in his morning conference. Here we explain when this dissolution takes effect, and how likely it is that it will be final.
What is the original schedule in Mexico?
In Mexico, as in any part of the world, the natural time depends on the time zone in which the person is. Historically, the states of Quintana Roo and Sonora have not been considered for the artificial change that takes place in April, in which "the clocks go forward one hour," according to the National Meteorology Center .
This modification begins at dawn on the first Sunday in April , and "ends on the last Sunday in October at 2:00 in the morning," documents the institution. In 1996, the Mexican authorities decided to establish summer time: the legal time established by the State to 'save electricity' . This meant that, for 26 years, people in Mexico went through their lives an hour earlier. Some didn't snort so much: they appreciated that 'it didn't get dark so early' .
However, after more than two decades, Mexico has issued a series of official documents stating that daylight saving time will finally come to an end. The federal government warned that Sunday , April 3, 2022, could be the last time life would be toured an hour earlier:
It must be emphasized that this is a social convention, which is not associated with any astronomical phenomenon . With all of the above, there are institutions that continue to support the time change during the summer period.
What are the benefits of daylight saving time?
"The time change alters the time of exposure to the sun and unbalances our biological clock, " explain the documents issued. Based on 'several International Sleep Societies', the Mexican authorities are in favor of more natural sleep schedules.
For this reason, the current administration advises "to maintain the winter time permanently , especially for children and the elderly," according to one of the documents. Even so, records of the Trust for the Saving of Electric Energy (FIDE) ensure that, each year, more than one million 300 thousand pesos are saved with the time change.
Does the time change really impact health?
However, the Ministry of the Interior suggests otherwise. Since 2017, less and less savings in electrical energy have been perceived . It seems that the argument that " there are more hours of sunlight , and therefore more time for daily activities" is no longer sufficient to support daylight saving time.
As director of the Sleep Disorders Clinic of the UNAM School of Medicine , Ulises Jiménez is skeptical of the argument that this scheme of activities causes these imbalances:
In any case, Andrés Manuel López Obrador assured that it is "very possible" that summer time in Mexico has come to an end . If this measure is abolished, the country would join the 18 more that have abandoned it over time.
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