Nearly 9 MILLION Americans need prescription pills to sleep and older women are most likely to suffer insomnia, says study
- 4% of all Americans take sleeping pills, according to new study
- Women, older people and the well-educated are more likely to take drugs
- Pill use seems to be rising due to surge in obesity and electronic gadgets
Nearly 9million Americans rely on sleeping to get a good night's rest, according to groundbreaking new research.
The findings, which are the first in-depth examination of how many people require drugs to fall asleep, show that white, female, older and educated Americans are more likely to use the pills.
In addition to the 8.6million people using prescription pharmaceuticals for sleep, millions are more are believed to rely on other options such as over-the-counter medicines or herbal remedies.
Pills: Four per cent of Americans now use prescription medication to help them sleep
The study was conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, who interviewed 17,000 adults in the U.S. from 2005 to 2010.
Overall, four per cent of them said they had taken a prescription sleeping pill or sedative in the previous month.
Insomnia seems to be increasing - use rose from 3.3 per cent in 2003-2006 to 4.3 per cent in 2007-2010, according to a CDC researcher.
This could be due to a number of factors, including obesity, the increasing prevalence of late-night electronic distractions such as social media, and financial worries linked to the recession.
Adults are supposed to get seven to nine hours sleep each night, but at least a third of adults get less that that.
Doctors recommend fixing a bedtime routine, exercising daily and avoiding caffeine at night in order to boost sleep levels.
Inadequate sleep is believed to cause or worsen diseases such as diabetes, heart disease, obesity and depression.
Common: Older women are most likely to rely on sleeping pills, according to a study (picture posed by model)
The CDC study into sleeping pill use found that five per cent of women take the drugs, compared to three per cent of men.
Use tends to increase among older people - seven per cent of over-80s take sleeping pills, but just two per cent of under-40s do so.
The prevalence of sleeping medication seems to spike past the age of 50, which experts suggest is because of the combined stresses of family and work which tend to peak around then.
Then as they reach old age, they are subject to aches and pains which make it harder to get a good night's sleep.
Sleeping pill use is more concentrated among white, with nearly five per cent being prescribed the medication, compared to 2.5 per cent of blacks and two per cent of Hispanics.
Wealthier and more-educated people are more likely to take sleeping pills, partly because they have better access to health insurance and medical treatment in general.
Sleep aids are controversial in some circles because they can make patients drowsy for hours after they wake up.
The Food and Drug Administration has ordered Ambien to be delivered in smaller doses to avoid the risk to users driving the next day.