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Sleep Deprivation: The Great American Myth..

IGBT

IGBT

Lifer
Text

Many Americans are sleep-deprived zombies, and a quarter of us now use some form of sleeping pill or aid at night.

Wake up, says psychiatry professor Daniel Kripke of the University of California, San Diego. The pill-taking is real but the refrain that Americans are sleep deprived originates largely from people funded by the drug industry or with financial interests in sleep research clinics.

"They think that scaring people about sleep increases their income," Kripke told LiveScience.

Thanks to the marketing of less addictive drugs directly to consumers, sleeping pills have become a hot commodity, especially in the past five years. People worldwide spent $2 billion on the most popular sleeping pill, Ambien (zolpidem), in 2004, according to the BioMarket, a biotech research company.

Earlier this month, it was reported that some Ambien users are susceptible to amnesia and walking in their sleep. Some even ate in the middle of the night without realizing it.

Global sales for all sleeping pills, called hypnotics, will top $5 billion in the next several years.
 
Honestly, I think it's silly that people listen to 'experts' so much. If you wake up tired all the time, and have to take prolonged naps during the day, you clearly don't sleep enough. If you make it through your day only feeling groggy around 3-5 (normal), then you are fine. it isn't rocket science.
 
I think it's because people are lazy. I do a little over an hour of cardio before I go to bed and I fall right to sleep. When I took some time off from it when I moved I didn't fall asleep as fast.
 
I don't think experts are saying that Americans have trouble sleeping (hence need pills), just that we don't get enough sleep (no pills required, just earlier bed time).
 
Originally posted by: Goo
Now if they made pill that will wake me up 7am every morning I will be all over it.
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..get a drip coffee maker. You'll look forward to your mornings. 😉

 
Originally posted by: IGBT
Text

Many Americans are sleep-deprived zombies, and a quarter of us now use some form of sleeping pill or aid at night.

Wake up, says psychiatry professor Daniel Kripke of the University of California, San Diego. The pill-taking is real but the refrain that Americans are sleep deprived originates largely from people funded by the drug industry or with financial interests in sleep research clinics.

"They think that scaring people about sleep increases their income," Kripke told LiveScience.

Thanks to the marketing of less addictive drugs directly to consumers, sleeping pills have become a hot commodity, especially in the past five years. People worldwide spent $2 billion on the most popular sleeping pill, Ambien (zolpidem), in 2004, according to the BioMarket, a biotech research company.

Earlier this month, it was reported that some Ambien users are susceptible to amnesia and walking in their sleep. Some even ate in the middle of the night without realizing it.
Click to expand...

Earlier this month??? Amnesia is listed as a side effect in paper that comes with the pills. At least it was when I was taking it briefly almost 3 years ago. Also warned you not to take it to fall asleep on airplanes or in unusual places. Apparently there were some people really freaking out about waking up in unexpected places.

I did have some amnesia when I took them - don't expect to remember anything from about half an hour before you took the pill until you fall asleep.

Global sales for all sleeping pills, called hypnotics, will top $5 billion in the next several years.
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Originally posted by: Fenixgoon
Originally posted by: Goo
Now if they made pill that will wake me up 7am every morning I will be all over it.
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winamp alarm?
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lol, we've gone from a normal alarm clock/radio to winamp alarm. You geek.
 
Originally posted by: Goo
Now if they made pill that will wake me up 7am every morning I will be all over it.
Click to expand...

Make it 6am and add "full of energy" for me.

Actually, my problem is moreso sleep apnea more than it is sleep deprivation...
 
Two things that make me suspicious of this report:

1. Daniel Kripke is closely tied with Mercola and is featured heavily on his page along with exclusive interviews.

2. Daniel Kripke's entire career is tied up around the notion of light therapy

Finally, his claims make one huge assumption: That it is the longer sleep that causes the early death, rather than people who are more likely to die earlier are also more likely to sleep longer. In other words, he shows only a weak correlation without any proof of causation.

BTW, he has been publishing these claims for years. That he has a new "study" to validate his claims is rather suspicious since they do just that. It looks as if he set out to find one outcome, and found it. Not very objective, if you ask me.

Am I saying he's wrong? No, I don't know that, but I'd take this with a huge truck load of salt, people.
 
Originally posted by: zanieladie
I have sleep apnea. 🙁

My CPAP helps...
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How big of a PITA is one of those things? My doctor suggested either having my tonsils removed or a CPAP. I'm thinking I may try the tonsils first...
 
Originally posted by: SampSon
This report, as well as the history of reports this researcher has released are questionable in credibility.
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Wow, I was beginning to think I was alone here.
 
I know if I had a choice I wouldn't live a 24 hour day. I'd feel much better if I was able to be awake 18 hours and then sleep for 10 or 12 hours. Until we convert to 36 hour days I guess I'm screwed. I was only able to pull this off once during a Christmas break at college, it was really productive. Wake up when you're no longer tired, go to sleep when you are...how novel.

The real problem here seems that most people are the same way. They aren't tired when they head off to bed, so they toss and turn at night. Then they finally fall asleep only to wake up midway though a good night of sleep to go to work.

 
Originally posted by: Amused
Finally, his claims make one huge assumption: That it is the longer sleep that causes the early death, rather than people who are more likely to die earlier are also more likely to sleep longer. In other words, he shows only a weak correlation without any proof of causation.
Click to expand...

That freaked me out for a second, because I am one of those people who will sleep 12 hours uninterrupted, and I read that I would "die earlier" (sooner/younger)

Then I thought about it some, and realized that death is merely a long sleep, and all things being equal, as much as I like sleeping, early death might not be a bad thing.

Then I read the article and saw:
Those who took sleeping pills nightly had a greater risk of death than those who took them occasionally, but the latter risk was still 10 to 15 percent higher than it was among people who never took sleeping pills.
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And I realized that
1.) There is no overall risk of early death, just a greater risk of dying at any age.
2.) The article doesn't even mention causality, and could very well suggest that taking sleeping pills increases your risk of being run over by a snowplow.

So I will sleep soundly tonight, knowing the study is a crock.

(edit: also, because the melatonin seems to be working)
 
Originally posted by: CPA
Originally posted by: Fenixgoon
Originally posted by: Goo
Now if they made pill that will wake me up 7am every morning I will be all over it.
Click to expand...

winamp alarm?
Click to expand...

lol, we've gone from a normal alarm clock/radio to winamp alarm. You geek.
Click to expand...

That's not geek, that's genius. Just try comparing a standard alarm buzzer or radio to the sheer force of a high-powered home stereo letting lose with some bed-shaking bass.

Which also has other benefits. 😉

- M4H
 
I just got off of caffeinie. My sleep regulated itself pretty well. I go to sleep much easier, without any of that "I can't turn off my brain!" that I had (with countless other people in the world.) I fall asleep quickly, and sleep all the way through the night. I can wake up off of 6 or 7 hours and feel great. I can concentrate and focus more easily now. I don't have heartburn as much, or as badly as I used to. I'm in a better mood, less wound up and frustrated. My fuse has extended dramaticly. I'm feelin' great.
 
Originally posted by: myusername
Originally posted by: Amused
Finally, his claims make one huge assumption: That it is the longer sleep that causes the early death, rather than people who are more likely to die earlier are also more likely to sleep longer. In other words, he shows only a weak correlation without any proof of causation.
Click to expand...

That freaked me out for a second, because I am one of those people who will sleep 12 hours uninterrupted, and I read that I would "die earlier" (sooner/younger)

Then I thought about it some, and realized that death is merely a long sleep, and all things being equal, as much as I like sleeping, early death might not be a bad thing.

Then I read the article and saw:
Those who took sleeping pills nightly had a greater risk of death than those who took them occasionally, but the latter risk was still 10 to 15 percent higher than it was among people who never took sleeping pills.
Click to expand...

And I realized that
1.) There is no overall risk of early death, just a greater risk of dying at any age.
2.) The article doesn't even mention causality, and could very well suggest that taking sleeping pills increases your risk of being run over by a snowplow.

So I will sleep soundly tonight, knowing the study is a crock.
Click to expand...

Thank you! Another critical thinker!
 
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