Permanent Daylight Time Will Make Your Winter Mornings Darker

On November 1, most of the country will turn the clocks back an hour. In B.C., Alberta, Manitoba and the Northwest Territories, the clocks will stay where they are, which makes this the first winter those regions spend on permanent daylight time.

For a lot of people that sounds like pure relief, since nobody misses the groggy week after a time change. A new analysis in the Canadian Medical Association Journal (CMAJ), written by sleep, mental health and economics researchers, comes to a different conclusion. It finds that the health evidence favours permanent standard time, the setting we fall back to, because it lines up better with the body's internal clock. Locking in summer time trades a brighter winter evening for a darker winter morning, and your body cares a great deal about the morning.

The Bottom Line

If you live in one of the four regions that are keeping their clocks still, sunrise will arrive an hour later on the clock all winter, so you will wake, commute, and send kids to school in more darkness than before. Researchers say morning light is the main signal that keeps your internal clock on time, so getting outside early and keeping your mornings bright are the best ways to protect your sleep.

Key Takeaways

B.C., Alberta, Manitoba and the Northwest Territories will not turn their clocks back on November 1.

A CMAJ analysis published October 5, 2026, concludes that the health evidence favours permanent standard time.

Morning light is the main signal that sets your internal clock, and keeping summer time all year pushes winter sunrise an hour later.

Russia adopted year-round summer time in 2011 and reversed it three years later, and the United States dropped its 1974 trial within a year.

B.C. cites a 2019 survey of more than 223,000 people in which 93 per cent preferred year-round daylight time, although permanent standard time was not an option.

Which Provinces Are Skipping the November 1 Time Change?

B.C., Alberta, Manitoba and the Northwest Territories all announced this year that they would stop switching their clocks and stay on permanent daylight time, so they will sit out the November 1 time change. Manitoba was the latest to decide, on September 17, and one practical result is that Manitoba will show the same time as Toronto this winter.

Yukon already stays on year-round summer time, and Saskatchewan has not changed its clocks in decades. Everywhere else in Canada, clocks fall back an hour as usual.

Why Does Morning Light Matter So Much to Your Body Clock?

Your circadian rhythm, the internal body clock that decides when you feel sleepy and when you feel alert, is set mainly by morning light. Ralph Mistlberger, a psychology professor at Simon Fraser University who has studied sleep and circadian rhythms for more than 40 years, told The Canadian Press that darker winter mornings mean waking at an earlier point in your biological night.

In practice, your brain may still be signalling that it is the sleep period when your alarm goes off. The same mismatch shows up at bedtime, when your body insists it is still time to be awake long after you should be asleep. If you already wake up feeling as though you never slept, the reasons people stay tired after a full night in bed are worth ruling out before winter adds one more.

Why Do Researchers Worry About Social Jet Lag?

Scientists call that mismatch social jet lag, which happens when your work and social schedule stop lining up with your biological clock. Mistlberger said a short stretch of poor sleep can be reversed with a good, long sleep, but when the mismatch becomes chronic, it is linked to real health problems. He pointed to higher rates of metabolic problems such as obesity and diabetes, to heart disease, and to large population studies that have found increases in cancer and some mood disorders.

The analysis also flags students. A study of adolescents living near a time zone boundary in Florida found that an extra hour of morning sunlight before school was associated with higher math and reading scores, an effect the authors compare to meaningful reductions in class size. The effect was largest around puberty, when circadian rhythms are most sensitive. Light works on your clock at the other end of the day too, which is why a recent study on light in the bedroom at night caught researchers' attention.

Has Year-Round Daylight Time Worked Anywhere Else?

History is not encouraging. Russia adopted year-round daylight time in 2011 and reversed it three years later amid public frustration over dark mornings, particularly in its northern regions. Chile walked back most of its 2015 change after complaints about school attendance and scheduling. The United States tried it nationwide in 1974 as an energy-saving measure and abandoned it within the year over dark commutes, children travelling to school before sunrise and workplace safety concerns.

The B.C. government says its choice will improve overall health, reduce disruption for families and provide an extra hour of evening light in winter. It points to a 2019 online survey of more than 223,000 people in which 93 per cent preferred to keep summer time all year. Patrick Baylis, an associate professor at the Vancouver School of Economics at the University of British Columbia and a co-author of the analysis, noted that the survey offered only two options, the old switching system or summer time all year, and never asked about permanent standard time.

Who Will Feel Dark Winter Mornings the Most?

In the four regions keeping their clocks still, dark winter mornings will stretch later into the day as December approaches, with sunrise an hour later on the clock than under the old system. That means more weeks of waking, commuting and getting kids to school in the dark. Teenagers are the group the researchers worry about most, and Baylis said it would make sense to monitor school outcomes and consider more flexible or later school start times.

If your energy already sags as the days shorten, why does low energy arrive with the shorter days may be helpful. The same short days also raise the vitamin D question many Canadians face each winter. If you live elsewhere in Canada, you still get the familiar adjustment week after the clocks fall back.

How Can You Protect Your Sleep This Winter?

The researchers' advice centres on light, and most of what protects your sleep this winter comes down to light and routine.

Get outside as early as you can. Mistlberger's advice is to get as much light as possible, as early in the day as possible, even when sunrise comes late. A short morning walk counts, and it adds to the daily step count that actually matters for your health.

Make mornings bright and evenings dim. Indoors, use bright light in the morning. If you have adjustable bulbs, keep them cooler and bluer early in the day and warmer and dimmer in the evening, because artificial light shifts your clock too.

Keep your wake time steady. Getting up at roughly the same time every day, weekends included, limits the gap between your schedule and your internal clock.

Watch how your teen is sleeping. Parents in the four regions may want to pay extra attention to how teenagers are sleeping and coping this winter, since they are the group researchers are most concerned about.

Talk to a doctor if it lasts. If low mood, constant fatigue, or sleep trouble goes on for more than a few weeks, that deserves a real conversation with a health care provider.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is B.C. changing the clocks on November 1?

B.C. is not changing its clocks on November 1. The province, along with Alberta, Manitoba and the Northwest Territories, is moving to permanent daylight time, so clocks there will stay where they are this fall. Most of the rest of Canada will fall back one hour on November 1, as usual, and Saskatchewan and Yukon do not change their clocks.

Is permanent standard time better for sleep?

A CMAJ analysis published on October 5, 2026, concluded that the health evidence favours permanent standard time, mainly because it lines up better with the body's internal clock. Standard time keeps winter sunrise earlier on the clock, which gives people more morning light, the main signal that keeps circadian rhythms on schedule through the darkest months.

Why is it so hard to wake up on dark winter mornings?

Your internal clock relies on morning light to move you out of your biological night. When sunrise comes later than your alarm, your clock may still be signalling that it is time to sleep, according to Simon Fraser University sleep researcher Ralph Mistlberger. Getting bright light soon after you wake helps reset that signal for the day.

Will Manitoba be on the same time as Toronto this winter?

Manitoba will match Toronto's clocks this winter. Ontario falls back one hour on November 1 while Manitoba stays on daylight time, so the two provinces will show the same time until Ontario springs forward again next March. The change has already pushed a dozen Winnipeg Jets home game start times back by an hour.

Your Next Step

If winter mornings leave you dragging no matter what you try, or your sleep trouble outlasts the season, that is worth a real conversation instead of another year of pushing through. Medimap shows live wait times at walk-in clinics near you, so you can get it checked before the darkest weeks arrive. For more seasonal health guides, explore the Medimap Health Hub.

Disclaimer: This article is for general information only and is not medical advice. Medimap is not a doctor and does not diagnose or treat. If you have symptoms or questions about your health, speak with a qualified health care provider. In an emergency, call 911.