Overcoming Insomnia to Achieve Healthy Sleep
Yesterday, at the seminar "Opening the Window of the Mind, Jointly Focusing on Sleep," co-organized by the Chinese Medical Association and Sanofi-Aventis, researchers pointed out significant differences in how people perceive and manage insomnia. Professor Gollanheim from Regensburg University in Germany noted: globally, approximately 20% to 30% of people suffer from insomnia, but fewer than 50% of them are diagnosed as having "insomnia."
This year’s World Sleep Day theme is: "Sleep Your Way to Health." Experts believe one major reason insomnia is hard to diagnose is that patients often don’t discuss their sleep problems with doctors, fearing it’s too trivial. Doctors also tend to overlook insomnia. Yet insomnia can be a signal of serious underlying diseases. Those experiencing sleep disturbances for the first time have twice the risk of ischemic heart disease and three times the risk of frequent headaches compared to those with good sleep. Doctors often attribute insomnia to "modern life stress" but neglect its role as a risk factor for other mental illnesses. Depression caused by insomnia is four times more common than in those without sleep issues, and 25% to 40% of depressed patients suffer from severe anxiety. Alcoholism and other issues also frequently occur among insomniacs. When lifestyle changes or vacations fail to help, experts suggest that insomniacs might need assistance from sleeping pills.
To make hypnotics safer and reduce dependency risks, sleep researchers are adopting a new dosing regimen. Eight clinical trials involving over 6,000 patients worldwide show that for those not suffering from insomnia every night, taking zolpidem only when needed—or not every night—is an ideal choice. It induces rapid, satisfying sleep without withdrawal symptoms. For clinicians, effective and well-tolerated non-continuous treatment means reducing the risk of dependency associated with long-term use of hypnotic drugs.<insomnia>