Sleep Medication

Being able to get a good night’s sleep should be high on everybody’s list of priorities, as there is extensive evidence that lack of sleep has a number of negative effects on our physical and mental well being. But a new study has warned that not every approach to getting more sleep has positive results, and may even work against us in the long term. According to researchers at the University of Washington, the use of some over-the-counter sleep aids over a long period of time can have a long-lasting impact on our mental health. Continue reading →

When people are having a hard enough time falling asleep that they seek medical help, they are usually looking for an easy answer, and all too often that comes in the form of a pill. Joan Rossman is a classic example of the type – a psychotherapist, Rossman found herself unable to fall asleep, and when she did fall asleep easily she would wake up far earlier than she wanted to and find herself unable to fall back to sleep. “Whether I was preoccupied or excited, it played out in my sleep patterns. I would awaken just exhausted. I knew something was not right,” she said. Continue reading →

With sleep deprivation reaching all time highs in the United States and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention raising an alarm about the health risks involved, it is no wonder that so many of us are turning to over-the-counter sleep aids as an easy answer when we’re having a hard time falling asleep. Unfortunately, just because taking these readily available pills is an easy answer doesn’t mean it is the right one. According to Dr. Dan Naim of the Los Angeles Sleep Study Institute, turning to sleep aids may end up doing us more harm than good.

Dr. Naim cites the results of a study that was done back in 202 that looked at the impact that having taken sleeping pills had on people who took the between the years 2002 and 2007. The study showed that the health risks linked to lack of sleep were actually exacerbated by the use of the pills. Dr. Naim says that sleep aids should only be taken “after non-drug routes are exhausted and for short term use only. The use of sleeping pills have everyday risks such as daytime drowsiness and unsafe driving. Sleeping pills are risky and could lead to death by contributing to the rate of cancer, heart disease and other ailments.” Continue reading →

With sleep deprivation and insomnia being one of the top concerns cited by adults in the United States, and with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention pointing to lack of adequate sleep as a public epidemic, anything that promises to help consumers get the rest that they need is bound to be a success. But a biotech company located in the suburbs of Philadelphia has gone one step further, investigating and developing an over-the-counter sleep aid that may also provide a cure for snoring. Requis Pharmaceuticals has announced that they are getting ready to submit an investigational new drug application to the United States Food and Drug Administration regarding their drug Requisom. Continue reading →

For many people who are struggling with insomnia, the idea of taking a sleep aid, whether over the counter or prescription, is troubling. Though sleep aids are popular, and are generally considered both safe and effective, news reports of side effects have been off-putting, Now the Food and Drug Administration is taking steps to minimize those impacts, recommending that the sleeping pill Lunesta’s dosage amounts be reduced in order to curb such problems as drowsiness while sleeping.  Continue reading →