Don't Forget! It's A Daylight Saving Time Weekend -- Spring Forward 1 Hour

DETROIT (WWJ) - It's daylight saving time again and for many of us, that also means losing an hour of precious sleep time as we adjust to the change.

Daylight saving time officially begins at 2 a.m. Sunday, although many people opt to set their clocks one hour ahead before going to sleep Saturday night.

For many people, daylight saving time is less about “springing forward” and more about falling behind… on their sleep schedule. Studies have indicated that losing that extra hour of sleep can raise the risk of everything from heart attacks to car accidents, especially on the Monday following the time change.

MORE: Daylight Saving Time And Its Effect On Your Pets

We know it's coming every year, but that doesn't make springing forward any easier. Researchers say most people need three to five days to adjust to the time change. For a small percentage of people, it takes about a week or even more before they feel adjusted to the new time. If you're feeling sleepy, short afternoon naps are recommended for a few days after the time change until the body adjusts.

Officials also recommend changing the batteries in your home's smoke detectors and carbon monoxide alarms when you set your clocks forward. If the detectors are more than 10 years old, officials say you should replace them.

So, why do we even change our clocks? Daylight saving time was instituted in the United States during World War I in order to save energy for war production by taking advantage of the later hours of daylight between April and October. The passage of the Energy Policy Act in 2005 extended daylight saving time by four weeks — from the second Sunday of March to the first Sunday of November.

Daylight saving time will end Nov. 4, when we'll set our clocks back one hour.