Americans Taking More Sleeping Pills Than Ever

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Americans Taking More Sleeping Pills Than Ever

 

 

Americans are taking more sleeping pills than ever before.

 

One in 10 Americans have difficulty falling asleep or staying asleep,

and 42 million prescriptions for sleeping pills were filled last year,

an increase of almost 60 percent over only five years.

 

More Than $300 Million

 

Drug companies spent over $300 million in 2005 to advertise sleep aids

-- a more than four-fold increase over 2004. Sepracor, the

manufacturers of Lunesta, advertised the most heavily, spending nearly

$200 million all by themselves.

 

Sanofi-Aventis, the makers of Ambien, responded by doubling their ad

spending for the previous year, to well over $100 million.

 

A Growing Market

 

Perhaps as a result, the market for " prescription sleep " drugs is growing:

 

* Over 213,000 doctors gave out a total of 3.3 million

prescriptions for Lunesta last year

 

* Sanofi-Aventis is beginning to push doctors and patients away

from Ambien, on which the patent is expiring, and over to " new and

improved " Ambien CR

 

* Rozerem, produced by Takeda Pharmaceuticals, debuted in America

last fall but has had a low profile so far

 

* Pfizer and Neurocrine Biosciences are negotiating with the FDA

to introduce Indiplon by the summer

 

Ignoring Problems

 

Experts worry that the drugs are being used without enough attention

being paid to side effects, or the underlying conditions that may be

causing sleeplessness in the first place.

 

New York Times February 7, 2006

 

The (Lakeland, FL) Ledger February 7, 2006

 

Dr. Mercola's Comment:

 

Despite more signs patients may be turning away from the poor excuse

that passes for conventional health care in America and gravitating

toward natural, safer treatments, when push comes to shove, many of

them still rely far too often on one-pill-cures.

 

We have a long way to go to turn our culture around. Taking control of

your sleeping habits is one of the best places to start, as a good

night's sleep is one of the most important habits you can have to

achieve optimal wellness and control your weight.

 

However, you will absolutely need to guard yourself against the drug

manufacturers, as they are clearly not blind to the opportunity here.

They certainly recognize a good market when they see it. Sepracor is

spending huge amounts so that Lunesta can compete with Ambien, and

raking in huge profits as a result.