Many people struggle to fall asleep or stay asleep. This common problem, known as insomnia, can leave people feeling tired and affect their daily lives.
To get better rest, some people take prescription sleeping pills, while others buy sleep aids from a pharmacy without a prescription.
Sleep medicines can include benzodiazepines, some antidepressants, and drugs known as Z-drugs, such as Ambien.
These medicines can help people sleep for a short time. However, scientists are becoming more concerned about their possible effects after many years of regular use.
A new study looked at whether sleep medications might be linked to dementia, a condition that slowly damages memory and thinking skills.
Researchers followed more than 3,000 older adults who did not have dementia when the study began. They tracked the participants for about nine years, and around one in five developed dementia during that time.
The researchers found that the risk was not the same for everyone. White participants who often used sleep medications were 79% more likely to develop dementia than those who did not use them. Black participants did not show the same increase in risk, which may be partly because they used these medicines less often.
The study also found differences in the types of medicines people used. White participants were more likely to take a wider range of sleep medications, including benzodiazepines, trazodone, and Z-drugs. The researchers believe these differences may have contributed to the different results between the two groups, but more studies are needed to fully understand why.
The findings suggest that both the type of sleep medicine and how often it is taken may matter. Although the study found a link, it does not prove that sleep medications directly cause dementia. Other health conditions or lifestyle factors could also play a role.
Because of these concerns, experts recommend trying other ways to improve sleep before relying on medication whenever possible. One effective option is cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia, which helps people change habits and thoughts that interfere with sleep. Treating conditions such as sleep apnea can also improve sleep without long-term use of sleeping pills.
Melatonin may be another option for some people. This natural hormone helps control the body’s sleep-wake cycle and is generally considered to have fewer risks than many prescription sleep medicines. Even so, researchers say more studies are needed to understand its long-term safety.
The researchers say doctors and patients should carefully discuss the benefits and possible risks before using sleep medications for long periods. Finding the safest way to improve sleep is especially important as people get older and their risk of dementia increases. The study was led by Dr. Yue Leng and published in the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease.
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