Why You Don't Need Those Sleeping Pills

It's an easy trap to fall into. You have a bad night of sleep and before you know it, this stretches into a run of bad nights. You try to observe good sleep hygiene, making a few changes to make things better, but your insomnia persists. You mention it to your doctor and you receive a prescription for a sleeping pill. Then the real trouble begins. Sleeping pills are one of the most widely prescribed medications in the world. In a recent report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, it was estimated that between 2005 and 2010 about 4 percent of U.S. adults aged 20 and older used sleeping pills in the previous month. According to IMS Health, which tracks prescription drug data, about 59 million sleeping pills were prescribed in the U.S. in 2012. The number of sleep aid prescriptions issued to young adults aged 18 to 24 has tripled in the period from 1998 to 2006. In a quest for sleep, the use of medications shows no sign of abating. Why is this so and can it be avoided? Insomnia is the most commonly encountered sleep problem in the primary care setting. These front-line medical providers face extreme pressure to increase efficiency, seeing more patients and spending less time with each of them. Though everyone can develop insomnia given the proper circumstances, when it becomes a chronic issue it can be difficult to unravel the contributing factors. Basic sleep guidelines may not be helpful in that they may not address the specific causes that are perpetuating the...
Source: About Sleep Disorders - Category: Sleep Medicine Source Type: news