Getting enough sleep is very important for staying healthy and feeling happy. But many people struggle with sleep.
In the United States, about one out of every three adults does not get enough rest. This makes it important to know how different medications might affect the way we sleep.
A group of scientists from the Berlin Institute of Health recently studied beta-blockers. These are medicines often given to people with high blood pressure and heart problems. Beta-blockers help the heart by slowing it down, which lowers blood pressure and reduces how hard the heart has to work.
Doctors prescribe beta-blockers for several heart conditions, such as chest pain, irregular heartbeats, heart failure, and high blood pressure.
Even though they are widely used, some people have been worried about the side effects. There have been concerns that beta-blockers might cause depression, anxiety, tiredness, trouble sleeping, strange dreams, or even seeing or hearing things that are not real.
To find out the truth, researchers looked at data from more than 50,000 people in 258 different studies. Most of these studies focused on using beta-blockers to treat high blood pressure. What they found was surprising.
The study showed that people taking beta-blockers were not more likely to become depressed than people taking other treatments or a placebo (a pill that does not do anything). This goes against what many people used to believe.
The number of people who stopped taking beta-blockers because of depression was also about the same as those who stopped taking other medications.
However, sleep problems were more common. People taking beta-blockers were more likely to have issues like strange dreams or trouble falling asleep. The most common reason people stopped taking beta-blockers was because they felt very tired.
These results tell us that beta-blockers are generally safe for mental health. But they might affect your sleep. This is important for doctors and patients to keep in mind, especially for people who already have trouble sleeping.
The research helps clear up a common worry. People do not need to be too concerned about beta-blockers causing depression. But it is still important to talk to your doctor if you have sleep problems while taking these medicines.
This study was led by Reinhold Kreutz and his team and was published in the journal Hypertension. It helps us better understand how beta-blockers affect people and supports better decision-making when using them for heart health.
In the end, this study reminds us that when doctors prescribe medicine, they should think not only about how it helps the body, but also how it might affect the mind and sleep. Sleep is an important part of health, and even small side effects can make a big difference in someone’s daily life.
If you care about high blood pressure, please read studies that early time-restricted eating could help improve blood pressure, and natural coconut sugar could help reduce blood pressure and artery stiffness.
For more health information, please see recent studies about added sugar in your diet linked to higher blood pressure, and results showing vitamin D could improve blood pressure in people with diabetes.
Copyright © 2025 Knowridge Science Report. All rights reserved.
