Sleeping pills - pharmaceuticals or nature? Side effects of sleeping pills

About half of people suffer
. There are many reasons for sleep disturbance. Many people decide on their own
about taking sleeping pills, because there are sleeping pills that are sold without
prescription And rarely does anyone consult a doctor about sleep disorders and selection
drugs. wants to talk about sleeping pills, about how to correctly them
take, about side effects.

What is a sleeping pill?

Certain drugs are prescribed for
insomnia treatment. They should be taken immediately before going to bed at night. Their
cannot be taken in morning time, since they cause severe drowsiness, y
a person's concentration is reduced, so it can be dangerous when driving
car, when working on machines, etc.

It is important to understand that sleeping pills are
An effective remedy to solve short-term sleep problems. Very
it is important to know all the information about sleeping pills in order to take them correctly and
avoid side effects. You should also remember that if you start
Taking sleeping pills does not mean that you no longer need to maintain hygiene
sleep and daily routine.

Sleeping pills are classified as sedatives
medications that are used to improve or support normal sleep.
There are three groups of drugs:

Benzodiazepines. This
a type of antidepressant that increases sleepiness and promotes rapid
falling asleep. These drugs are used only for short-term treatment, as
How are they addictive?
Barbiturates. This
type of drugs cause drowsiness by suppressing nervous system. Eat
preparations of long and short acting, are used as a sedative and
sleeping pills. But most often this type drugs used in
quality of anesthesia.
Other types
sleeping pills. New look drugs that reduce the time spent
to fall asleep. Such drugs are not addictive.

Side effects of sleeping pills

Like any medicine, sleeping pills too
has side effects.

If a person suffers from asthma, he is given sleeping pills
with extreme caution, as some drugs may slow down breathing,
make breathing less deep. For asthmatics and people with obstructive conditions
lung diseases are very dangerous.

Most common side effects
actions:

Tingling
in the arms and legs
Violation
appetite
Diarrhea
or constipation, flatulence
dizziness,
headaches
Dryness
mucous membranes
Pain
in the stomach, heartburn
Weakness
Uncontrollable
movements of body parts
Unusual
dreams

These potential side effects
you need to know in order to prevent their occurrence or choose others
medications, and know when to see a doctor.

But besides the above, side
actions, there are more serious violations. And these include parasomnia,
which is uncontrollable behavior and actions of a person,
Moreover, the person is absolutely unaware of what is happening to him. A person can
unconsciously eat food, can make calls and perform any other actions while
during sleep.

Incorrect use of sleeping pills,
An overdose can lead to sleep disturbances and side effects.

Some people may experience
allergy to sleeping pills. Therefore, when the following symptoms should
Contact your doctor immediately:

Deterioration
vision
Pain
in the chest
Difficulty
breathing or swallowing, shortness of breath
Rash
or itching
Nausea
and vomiting
Hoarseness
Rapid
or loud heartbeat
Swelling
mucous membranes

At the first such signs you should
Stop taking these medications immediately.

The most dangerous complication, which can
giving sleeping pills is anaphylaxis. It is an acute allergic
reaction. Severe swelling of the mucous membranes may occur. This condition is
deadly. Therefore, if you are allergic, then the doctor who prescribes you
sleeping pills, you should definitely tell this.

When to take sleeping pills

Before using sleeping pills
drug, be sure to read the instructions, because each drug has its own
specific features. The drug is taken shortly before bedtime.

One more thing important condition reception
sleeping pills - you need to be sure that you can get the sleep you need
amount of sleep, i.e. you will definitely have 8 hours of sleep, and you won’t have to early
get up and get behind the wheel.

Sleeping pills and alcohol

The combination of sleeping pills and alcohol is very
dangerous because alcohol increases the sedative effect of sleeping pills.
This condition can be life-threatening.

Who knew that during the reception
sleeping pills should not be eaten or drunk grapefruit juice. It turns out that he himself
grapefruit affects the amount of medicine that is concentrated in the blood and on
the time this medicine remains in the blood. Therefore, grapefruit can cause
drug overdose.

Sleeping pill addiction

If you long time torments
insomnia and your doctor decides that you take medication for
over several weeks, then in this case addiction may occur
body to this drug. A person may also develop psychological
addiction to sleeping pills. And often many people think that they will have to fall asleep
without sleeping pills, it begins to cause fear in a person. Therefore, so that there is no
such dependence, it is very important to follow the doctor's instructions and finish the appointment
medications when the doctor said.

Sleeping pills are medications that slow down your work various departments central nervous system and cause a state close to natural sleep. Small doses of sleeping pills have a sedative (calming) effect. Hypnotics include benzodiazepine derivatives (nitrozepam, or eunoctine), barbiturates (for example, phenobarbital), as well as substances that have other chemical structure. Calming and sedatives are also used as sleeping pills, which relieve feelings of tension and anxiety and make it easier to fall asleep. Benzodiazepines are not as addictive as barbiturates and are less dangerous if the dose is exceeded, so lately they almost replaced the latter. However, benzodiazepines cannot be considered safe, since in 15-44% of patients taking them for a long time, addiction to them develops. In addition, in case of overdose, these drugs can cause severe poisoning and death.

Despite the abundance sleeping pills on the shelves of our pharmacies, none of them are safe, they are all addictive to one degree or another and, in the event of an overdose, impair brain function.

Although sleeping pills put the body to sleep, they do not remove the cause of insomnia. In addition, the sleeping pill disrupts the natural physiological cycle of sleep and suppresses some of its phases. If a person gets used to falling asleep with the help of pills, his body will no longer be able to reproduce its own sleep as quickly as before. chemicals, which induce natural sleep. This is why sleeping pills provoke even more severe insomnia. Due to the fact that drugs do not stop production active substances and the brain is simultaneously stimulated and suppressed, artificial sleep will not be as deep and calm as natural, which means it will not bring complete restoration to the body.

Contraindications when using sleeping pills!

Sleeping pills are contraindicated for people suffering from cardiovascular diseases, respiratory diseases and various psychoses. However, even completely healthy person medicines for insomnia will cause a lot of harm. If you drink them daily, substances gradually accumulate in the body, causing constant drowsiness. Even after sleeping long enough, a person does not feel rested and will suffer from headaches. Among side effects of sleeping pills - dizziness, decreased visual acuity, impaired speech and sensitivity in lower limbs, changes in blood composition, as well as jaundice. As a result of taking a series sleeping pills latest generation Amnesia and sleepwalking may develop.

After a long course of treatment, the medicine simply stops working, and in order to fall asleep, you have to increase the dose. The addiction to sleeping pills can be so strong that refusing it will lead not only to new sleep disturbances, but also to more unpleasant consequences:

hallucinations;
convulsions;
depression;
mental disorders such as paranoia;
irritability;
nervousness.

Insomnia is one of the five most common complaints that patients see their doctor.

You can take sleeping pills only under the supervision of a doctor, who will select the correct drug and its dose. The latter should be as small as possible, and the course of treatment should be short (usually 1-3 days). Even with severe chronic insomnia Doctors do not recommend taking sleeping pills for more than 2 weeks.

You should not resort to medications if you can get rid of insomnia without them, for example, by increasing physical activity during the day, giving up coffee, tea or alcohol before bed, evening TV watching or reading books. Helps you fall asleep natural remedies, For example, warm milk, drunk at night. Substances contained in sleeping pills are found in regular foods, such as tryptophan, which doctors prescribe to their patients when they have difficulty falling asleep. large quantities found in regular bananas and turkey meat.

Long-term studies on the effects of sleeping pills do not show encouraging results. In fact, one big conclusion needs to be made that it is better to fight insomnia without sleeping pills than with them. One study of more than 2,000,000 people found that chronic use of sleeping pills is as lethal as cigarette smoking. Those who use sleeping pills have significantly more high level mortality than those who do not use them.

Sleeping pills reduce the activity of brain cells during the day, affecting short term memory, and also causes a hangover effect.

Sleep apnea

Sleep apnea is a disease manifested by frequently recurring partial (hypopnea) or complete (apnea) collapse (fall) of the upper respiratory tract during sleep, this is a blocking process airways during sleep. People having sleep apnea should never take sleeping pills. Sleeping pills increase the pause and length of the pause in breathing. In people with sleep apnea, it can cause damage to the brain or eyes, lack of oxygen, or even death.

Anyone over the age of 40 should be warned against taking sleeping pills, and anyone over 65 should not take sleeping pills. Research shows that almost all people over 40 years of age have some symptoms of sleep apnea, and anyone over 65 often has a clinical diagnosis of sleep apnea.

When can sleeping pills be used?

Of course, there are situations where the use of sleeping pills may be appropriate, such as after a traumatic psychological episode ( sudden death in the family, violent crime) or serious violation in connection with the disease. However, this should be short-lived and should not lead to long-term use sleeping pills

Help with insomnia

Natural products are becoming increasingly popular in consumer market, to solve problems with insomnia.

We can include such productswhich contains all eight essential amino acids, including tryptophan. Tryptophan is responsible for the production of serotonin in the brain and is used as a natural antidepressant. IN Aloe Vera contains the following list of amino acids, enzymes, minerals, polysaccharides, vitamins and other essential components of natural origin, which can form an encyclopedia of nutrition! Fantastic healing and nutritional properties aloe vera are due to the synergistic interaction of all its useful components for healing the whole body.

Low serotonin levels cause insomnia, depression, constant feeling hunger and attention deficit disorder. Tryptophan is found in sunflower seeds, cheese, oats and Brazil nuts.

Griffonia is an exotic plant native to West and Central Africa that contains the natural substance 5-hydroxytryptophan (5-HTP). 5-HTP molecules easily penetrate brain cells, turning into serotonin. Studies have shown that 5-HTP is as effective as synthetic antidepressants. This substance together with () increases the synthesis of endorphins responsible for positive emotions, helps improve mood and restore all phases healthy sleep: falling asleep, quick and light sleep . In European countries, this substance has been used for many years to improve memory. 5-HTP also suppresses the stimulation of the appetite control center in the brain, reducing cravings especially for carbohydrate foods. In addition, this amino acid is effective: reduces feelings of depression, tension, anxiety, emotional instability, irritability that arise in last week cycle.

Sleeping pills - pharmaceuticals or nature? updated: 032220178601 by: Alexander

The reticular formation, which is a branched network of neurons and nerve fibers, located in the brain stem and responsible for activation electrical activity brain, controls the cycle of sleep and wakefulness. Barbiturates and some others medicines suppress the activity of certain areas of the brain, having a hypnotic effect in low doses, and a general analgesic effect in high doses.

Alcohol, opiates, antihistamines, and other drugs that depress the central nervous system (CNS) have a similar effect. Benzodiazepine-type hypnotics and some other hypnotics do not produce anesthesia even in very high doses.

Complications and side effects

Since taking barbiturates is accompanied by a withdrawal syndrome, impaired coordination of movements and suppression of reflex activity, certain activities, such as driving a car, should be avoided until their effects completely cease.

When taking benzodiazepine derivatives, withdrawal syndrome is practically absent, but one of the drugs in this group - nitrazepam - is characterized by this effect and lasts about 20 hours from the moment of taking the drug.

Many sleeping pills, particularly barbiturates, have another serious side effect: they depress breathing during sleep. Therefore, patients with respiratory diseases should avoid the use of these drugs.

Some people develop allergies in response to certain sleeping pills. It is almost impossible to predict the possibility of an allergic response, but a person’s allergy to a drug belonging to one of the groups of sleeping pills indicates high probability development of allergies to other drugs in this group.

Confusion is common when taking barbiturates, especially in older people. This property of drugs in this group is unsafe and can cause accidents. In addition, there is a high risk of interaction between barbiturates and aliphatic hypnotics with drugs from other groups. Therefore, a doctor prescribing any medications must be aware that the patient is taking sleeping pills.

Consultation with an anesthesiologist regarding the use of sleeping pills

Isn't it dangerous joint reception sleeping pills and alcohol before bed?

Dangerous. Alcohol enhances the effect of sleeping pills, deepening their sedative effect, which is fraught with serious complications. A small amount of alcohol taken before bed itself has a strong hypnotic effect, but alcohol abuse is harmful.

Is taking sleeping pills dangerous for children?

All medicines without exception must be stored out of the reach of children. Due to low body weight, taking sleeping pills by a child in an amount even slightly exceeding the therapeutic dose for an adult is fatal. If necessary, sleeping pills are still prescribed to children, but only for a short time and with strict observance dosage.

Is it true that some sleeping pills cause drowsiness that is incompatible with driving?

Indeed, most commonly used sleeping pills cause noticeable drowsiness that lasts for some time after awakening. For this reason, you should avoid driving vehicles until the effect of the drug is complete.

Is taking sleeping pills for many years harmful?

Harmful. Due to the careless use of sleeping pills in the past, many patients became dependent on barbiturates. Some time after starting to take the drug, the effectiveness of the prescribed dose decreases and the patient requires increasingly larger quantities. In addition, sleep induced by sedatives is not as refreshing as natural sleep, so sleeping pills are recommended to be taken for a short time: until doctors identify the causes of insomnia and eliminate them.

When used correctly, sleeping pills, of course, promote sleep and ensure proper rest at night. However, even in the case correct application they may have side effects such as risks of physical and psychological dependence, drowsiness in daytime and various physical disorders.

The mechanism by which sleeping pills work varies from one type to another. Prescription sleep aids can be divided into two main groups: benzodiazepine sleep aids, or hypnotics, and non-benzodiazepine sleep aids. Nonbenzodiazepine hypnotics are the most commonly prescribed hypnotics and are considered more good choice than benzodiazepine hypnotics. The most well-known example of a non-benzodiazepine hypnotic is Ambien®. Such sleeping pills, like Ambien, cause minimal side effects, begin working within 30 minutes, and have a half-life of approximately 3 hours.

Some products are available without a prescription. Most over-the-counter sleep aids cause drowsiness due to the antihistamines they contain, and may eliminate mild insomnia, but are considered ineffective in the long term. Sominex® is a common example of non-prescription sleep aids; it contains diphenhydramine. Diphenhydramine is also sold under generic names and as the brand-name allergy drug Benadryl®, which is also often sold as a sleep aid.

One of the benefits of using sleeping pills is that they can have two effects: they help you fall asleep and they also help you stay asleep. Their duration of action varies, but most sleeping pills are effective for 6-8 hours. Also important factors The things to consider, especially if you need to work the next day, are the half-life and delayed effects. The main disadvantage of taking sleeping pills is the risk of physical or psychological dependence.

Sleeping pills can cause various side effects

daytime sleepiness
confusion
memory impairment
headaches and dizziness

They usually become less effective when taken over a long period of time. This may lead to an increase in the recommended dosage. In addition, sleeping pills often interact with prescription drugs and worsen certain medical conditions, such as increased blood pressure. Over-the-counter sleep aids are not recommended for women who are breastfeeding or those with heart problems or glaucoma.

Experts advise taking the following measures to minimize the risk of dependence when taking sleeping pills. The use of such drugs should be limited to the lowest possible doses and should not be used continuously for more than 2-3 weeks. It is also advisable to adhere to the recommended dosage and give preference to drugs with a short half-life.

Moreover, if possible risks cause concern, natural alternatives may be a good choice. Sleeping pills for plant based often have fewer side effects and are widely available.

According to the observations of doctors, insomnia is as common a complaint among patients as colds and headache, especially in big cities. The usual practice in solving the problem of insomnia was to prescribe sleeping pills, but today the approach of many doctors in each specific case becomes individual. However, people suffering chronic form insomnia, it is impossible to do without sleeping pills, but you should be aware of the side effects of these medications and possible contraindications.

Types of sleeping pills

Sleeping pills are used to treat sleep disorders and insomnia. Non-narcotic hypnotics have a rather selective effect on certain areas and functions of the brain. Narcotic sleeping pills (barbiturates) have a depressing effect on the entire central nervous system of a person.

Sleeping pills are absolutely contraindicated during pregnancy and breastfeeding, with severe respiratory failure, special sensitivity to medicines, as well as for children under fifteen years of age. Some drugs have an irritating effect on the mucous membrane of the esophagus, stomach and intestines and can cause allergic reactions, skin diseases. Hypnotics should be used with particular caution in patients with disorders respiratory function, at chronic diseases upper respiratory tract and sleep apnea syndrome. It is believed that most sleeping pills cause depression of the respiratory center. The least dangerous drug in this sense is the new generation drug zopiclone. Prescribing sleeping pills to patients old age, the possibility of changes in sensitivity to drugs, as well as their pharmacological characteristics. In this case, they start with doses that are approximately two times less than usual, with a gradual increase, and careful monitoring of the condition of elderly patients is necessary.

The so-called behavioral toxicity of sleeping pills includes feelings of increased sleepiness during the day, difficulty performing activities that require quick reaction time, concentration, and concentration. Benzodiazeline group hypnotics cause memory impairment. Sometimes taking sleeping pills can cause disturbances such as sleep walking, sleep eating, hallucinations and even driving. Many of these disorders also arise because taking sleeping pills is combined with drinking alcohol, which is absolutely not allowed.

Long-term and regular use of sleeping pills is characterized not only by side effects, but also causes addiction and dependence of a person on the drug over time. In any case, you should definitely talk to your doctor about taking sleeping pills, especially when you have health problems or any disease for which it is indicated. drug therapy. Only a doctor can competently select drugs based on their compatibility, as well as develop an individual treatment regimen that takes into account the patient’s age and physiological parameters. Uncontrolled reception sleeping pills can lead to relapses of insomnia and sleep disorders, that is, to an effect that is the opposite of what was expected.