The West Skipped the Time Change and Sleep Experts Are Worried

If you woke up Sunday to a bonus hour, you live in one version of Canada. If nothing on your phone changed, you live in the other, and sleep researchers have strong opinions about which half made the healthier choice.

On Sunday, November 1, most of Ontario, Quebec, and Atlantic Canada turned their clocks back an hour as usual. Most of British Columbia, along with Alberta, Manitoba, the Northwest Territories, and northwestern Ontario, skipped the time change and will stay on daylight time year-round, according to CTV News and provincial announcements. The researchers who study sleep for a living are glad the switching is ending in those places, though many say the provinces chose the wrong time to keep.

Key takeaways

Most of B.C., Alberta, Manitoba, the Northwest Territories, and northwestern Ontario did not fall back on November 1 and now stay on daylight time year-round.

Saskatchewan has stayed on standard time since 1966, and Yukon stopped changing its clocks in 2020.

Sleep scientists, including authors of a 2026 CMAJ analysis, say permanent standard time is healthier because it keeps light in the morning.

In parts of B.C., winter sunrise will now arrive close to 9 a.m., which researchers worry will hit teenagers hardest.

Morning light, a steady wake time, and dimmer evenings help protect sleep and mood on either side of the divide.

Which provinces did not turn their clocks back?

People in most of B.C. made their last seasonal switch in March and did not turn their clocks back this fall. Alberta, Manitoba, and the Northwest Territories now follow the same pattern, according to a province-by-province breakdown from Daily Hive. Ontario announced in October that Kenora and communities west of the 90th meridian would stay aligned with Manitoba.

Public support for ending the switch was strong. B.C. residents voted 93 per cent in favour of ditching the clock change in 2019, CTV News reports, and Manitoba's government said 92 per cent of the nearly 72,000 people who answered its survey wanted a permanent time. Quebec's premier has also said the province will end the time change, though it has not yet chosen which time to keep, Global News reports.

Why do sleep scientists prefer standard time?

Ending the twice-yearly switch is popular, and the argument among scientists is about which time to freeze. Many sleep researchers favour permanent standard time, the time most of the country falls back to each November, because it keeps sunlight in the morning when the body clock needs it most.

Wendy Hall, a professor emeritus at the University of British Columbia's School of Nursing, told CTV News that B.C. chose the wrong way to go. Ralph Mistlberger, a psychology professor at Simon Fraser University and co-author of a 2026 analysis in the Canadian Medical Association Journal, explained that a delayed body clock leaves people less alert and more short on sleep in the morning. Researchers call that mismatch between the body clock and the alarm clock social jet lag.

Rébecca Robillard, co-chair of the Canadian Sleep Research Consortium, has made the same case, telling Global News that morning sunrise resets the biological clock. The CMAJ authors also point to Russia, which moved to permanent daylight time in 2011 and reversed it three years later as public dissatisfaction grew, The Canadian Press reported.

Is there a case for brighter evenings?

Supporters of the change point to brighter evenings for after-work errands, exercise, and time outdoors, and governments describe the move as a simplification that residents asked for. Ending the switch itself has broad support, since the twice-yearly change has been blamed for everything from disrupted sleep to more car crashes and even heart attacks, CTV News reports.

Even the critics agree that stopping the back-and-forth is progress. Their objection is narrower, and it centres on how late the sun now rises in winter in provinces that already sit far north.

What do darker mornings mean for you?

If you live in B.C., Alberta, or Manitoba, your evenings will stay brighter this winter, while your darker mornings will be unlike any winter you remember. In parts of B.C., sunrise will now land close to 9 a.m. during the darkest weeks, which means commuting and walking to school in the dark.

Mistlberger told CTV News that teenagers, who already tend to be night owls, could struggle most, and Hall predicted that parents may push the province to reconsider within a year. People who rarely get up before sunrise may barely notice the change. If you live where the clocks fell back, you got your hour back along with the familiar 5 p.m. darkness. Our guide to low energy when the days get shorter covers what that does to energy levels.

How can you protect your sleep this winter?

Whichever side of the divide you live on, the same basics protect your sleep through the darker months. Our earlier explainer on why sleep researchers worry about permanent daylight time has more background, and these steps are the practical core.

Get light early. Go outside, or sit at a bright window, within an hour of waking, since morning sunlight helps reset your body clock.

Use a light box if you rise before the sun. Mistlberger suggested the bright lamps used for seasonal low mood as a stand-in for missing morning daylight.

Keep your wake time steady. Get up at roughly the same time every day, weekends included.

Dim the evening. Switch to warmer, dimmer lights, put screens away in the hour before bed, and keep the bedroom dark, since light in your bedroom at night has been linked to changes in the heart.

Watch your mood. Take a slide in energy and motivation seriously if it deepens through November instead of waiting for spring.

If your nights still feel worse even when the hours look fine, our guide to why your sleep can feel worse even when you get the same hours is a good next read.

Frequently asked questions

Why do some provinces still change their clocks?

Provinces set their own time rules, and many want to stay aligned with neighbouring provinces and U.S. states for trade, travel, and broadcasting. Ontario passed a law in 2020 to end the time change only if Quebec and New York did the same. Quebec has now said it will stop switching, though it has not chosen which time to keep.

Does losing morning light affect mood?

Morning light helps set the body clock that controls sleep, alertness, and mood, so later sunrises can leave some people groggier and lower in mood through winter. Seasonal low mood also becomes more common as daylight shrinks. If low mood or poor sleep lasts more than two weeks, talk to a doctor about it.

What does social jet lag mean?

Social jet lag describes the mismatch between your body clock and the schedule that work or school sets for you. When the body clock runs later than the alarm, people wake up before they are biologically ready, which leaves them less alert and short on sleep. Researchers worry permanent daylight time makes that gap wider in winter.

Your next step

If darker mornings start dragging down your sleep or your mood this winter, you do not have to wait for spring to deal with it. The Medimap Health Hub has more on sleep and energy, and you can find a family doctor near you and book an appointment, often within the same week.

Disclaimer: This article is for general information only and is not medical advice. It does not replace a conversation with a doctor or other qualified health professional who knows your history. If you think you are having a medical emergency, call 911 or go to the nearest emergency department.