Like a lack of sleep itself, consistent sleeping medication use can have serious health consequences. People may also have rebound insomnia, meaning they can’t sleep without the medication. Using a sleeping medication every day can lead to problems such as tolerance, in which the body physically requires a higher dose of the medication to have an effect, or dependence, in which stopping the medication leads to withdrawal symptoms like seizures.
How you sleep can cause neck and back pain Young man suffering neck and shoulder pain Adobe Stock “So sleeping pills can be really useful in that context, but it’s not recommended to use them for more than two weeks.” “It’s really important that we support patients in the best way that we can, because insomnia can lead to depression and anxiety,” Bhopal said. They may be useful for people who are going through acute stressors that make it difficult to sleep, such as divorce, job loss or grief.
Health effects of long-term sleeping pill useĮxperts say that sleeping medication can be helpful tools when used for their intended purpose. Other research has found that people with higher rates of financial stress and debt have more sleep issues and are more likely to be prescribed sleep medications. She added that “it’s striking, but it is not surprising” that sleeping medication use increased with decreased income. And so to see that the highest rate of use in this population is concerning.” These include things like confusion, the risk of falling, breaking bones, and even are at a higher risk of cognitive issues like dementia. “Sleeping pills have a lot of side effects, and older adults are more prone to experiencing the negative effects of these medications. I see this in my clinical practice, where women might be diagnosed as having insomnia when they actually have sleep apnea, because sleep apnea can show up very differently in women than it can in men,” said Bhopal, who was not involved in the new study.īhopal also found it alarming that the highest use of sleep meds was among older adults, for whom they are generally not recommended. “In women, sleep issues are often misdiagnosed. Nishi Bhopal, a psychiatrist and sleep medicine doctor, says these findings are concerning for a few reasons. “This report is useful to document the most recent prevalence estimates of adults’ use of sleep medication and confirm that these differences still persist.”ĭr. “Previous research has found similar relationships,” noted study co-author Lindsey Black, a researcher at the National Center for Health Statistics. Sleep medication use fell as family income rose, from 10% among adults below the federal poverty level to 8.2% among those making two or more times the federal poverty level. Sleep medication use was also highest among older adults, with 11.9% of those 65 and over saying they use a sleep aid every night or most nights. They found that women were more likely to take sleep medication than men across all age, race and ethnicity, and income groups. The researchers defined sleep medication use as taking any medication, whether prescription or over-the-counter, to help fall or stay asleep most days or every day in the past 30 days. Smile and let go a little - learning to not be so hard on yourself can lead to a healthier lifestyle.Įxercise, eat right, get good sleep: The top 3 ways to prevent so many diseases
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