In Why Can’t I Sleep, John also explains some of the basic mistakes people make
in their pursuit of a good night’s sleep.
The wrong foods and medications, no time for relaxation, no time for movement, overwork and stress, are some of the commonest reasons why people experience insomnia or poor quality sleep.
In turn, poor sleep health can lead to illnesses such as obesity, high blood pressure, heart attacks and strokes.

This book explains how very small changes in the reader’s lifestyle and diet can have a big impact on sleep health and thus physical and mental health. Why Can’t I Sleep provides an essential read for anyone suffering from insomnia and sleep difficulties.

A must–read guide that helps eliminate common sleep mistakes and ensures the reader sleeps well.

Sleeping Pills

Sleeping pills are being taken by 1.5million Britons at any one time, mainly the over-65s. In 2013, nearly 9 million Americans regularly used sleeping pills to help them sleep at night, according to data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. About two-thirds of sleeping pills are taken by people who use them chronically for several years! According to Mail Online prescription sleeping pills taken by more than one million Britons can raise chance of developing Alzheimer's by 50%. Patients who had been taking them for more than six months were 80 per cent more at risk. It is not recommended to use the over-the-counter medications as their effectiveness and side effects may vary and be undesired. It is best to discuss possible sleep aids with your primary care physician. Typical medications for insomnia include benzodiazepine hypnotics, non-benzodiazepine hypnotics, and melatonin receptor agonists. Sleeping pills do not cure insomnia and can even contribute to the development of chronic insomnia. There's no evidence that proves sleeping pills can cure insomnia, said Jack Edinger, a sleep specialist at National Jewish Health hospital in Colorado.

Common side effects of prescription sleeping pills such as Lunesta, Sonata, Ambien, Rozerem, and Halcion may include:

• Burning or tingling in the hands, arms, feet, or legs
• Changes in appetite
• Constipation
• Diarrhea
• Difficulty keeping balance
• Dizziness
• Daytime drowsiness
• Dry mouth or throat
• Gas
• Headache
• Heartburn
• Impairment the next day
• Mental slowing or problems with attention or memory
• Stomach pain or tenderness
• Uncontrollable shaking of a part of the body
• Unusual dreams
• Weakness

While these drugs may be useful short-term, all benzodiazepines are potentially addictive and can cause problems with memory and attention. They are usually not recommended for long-term treatment of sleeping problems. Sleeping pills can also mask a medical condition connected to your sleeping problems. You should aim to identify the source of insomnia. Sleeping pills can affect your mental state the next day, leading to lower levels of concentration and higher risks of an accident. They can increase your risk of early death or cancer (2012 study published in BMJ Open). Sleep experts say that sleeping pills can make you fall asleep and stay asleep.

And even if you do get to sleep, they don’t guarantee you’ll get the right kind of sleep. Zolpidem (Ambien) is a commonly prescribed sleep aid. A May 1 2013 report from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) noted that emergency department visits for adverse reactions to Zolpidem increased by about 220% from 2005 to 2010. This means that there were 6,111 visits to emergency departments in the US in 2005 and 19,487 in 2010 due to adverse reactions to this medication (Psychology Today).

Yet despite many side effects, this is still a common insomnia treatment prescribed by many doctors. In fact, in recent years pharmaceutical companies report an even greater increase in sleeping pills sales.

What doctors think about sleeping pills?

Lead author Kathryn Reid, PhD, of the Department of Neurobiology and Physiology at Northwestern University, says: Drug-free treatment is best for insomnia because it eliminates the potential of sleep medications interacting with other drugs a person might be taking.

Dr Robert Lefever, retired GP, now addiction counsellor says: Apart from in cases of serious illness, the human body looks after itself very well. And many drugs, including antibiotics, tranquillizers and sleeping tablets, are prescribed unnecessarily. Not only am I a very reluctant taker of tablets, I was also a very reluctant prescriber as a GP and the cost of my prescriptions was consistently 40% lower than other doctors in my local area.

Dr. Kripke, MD and researcher, reports that sleeping pills make your brain less active, and that depressed activity doesn't typically simply vanish when the sun comes up. He notes that: " … almost all sleeping pills produce immediate impairments in memory and performance. Further there is extensive evidence that sleeping pills on average impair performance and memory on the following day.”

Dr Max Pemberton, MD, author and journalist says: Sleeping tablets don’t cure the problem: they mask it. And, as I’ve seen many times, they create more problems than they solve. The traditional tablets, benzo-diazepines as far as I’m concerned should be banned. People get trapped in a downward spiral of having to take more and more pills, and are unable to stop. I absolutely believe sleeping tablets have the potential to ruin lives.

According to Telegraph UK, health professionals warn that doctors should limit sleeping pill prescriptions. Doctors have been told they should only issue prescriptions of sleeping pills and tranquillisers in exceptional circumstances after they acknowledged the drugs can be highly addictive. Consult with your health professional what is the right insomnia treatment for yourself.