[tz] Giuntella & Mazzonna on health and economic costs of DST

[Paul Eggert]

A recently-published report by researchers from Pitt and USI found that daylight 
saving time reduces sleep duration by an average of 19 minutes in the US, and 
that this harms people's health and workers' wages. The researchers used CDC and 
US Census data to compare behavior on the western and eastern sides of time zone 
boundaries, and reported that individuals using daylight-saving time are 11% 
more likely to be overweight and 5.6% more likely to be obese. On average their 
wages are 3% lower. Effects are strongest on those with early work schedules.

The researchers give the following bounds for the US annual economic costs of 
these effects: $2.35 billion ($82 per capita) for increased healthcare costs, 
and $612 million ($23 per capita) for worker productivity losses. These are 
lower bounds: actual costs are most likely higher. Costs are in 2017 dollars.

Giuntella G, Mazzonna F. Sunset time and the economic effects of social jetlag; 
evidence from US time zone borders. J Health Econ. 2019. 
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhealeco.2019.03.007 (draft: 
https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/3dd9/bf55292c1396a912b82c736ea3485dd5b884.pdf)

A summary can be found in:

Ingraham C. How living on the wrong side of a time zone can be hazardous to your 
health. Washington Post. 2019-04-19 06:00 -04. 
https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2019/04/19/how-living-wrong-side-time-zone-can-be-hazardous-your-health/