Nearly every one knows all the main tips for a better night’s sleep, such as have regular exercises, avoid taking caffeine – containing food and drinks, not to have naps during a daytime, stick to a regular sleep schedule as much as possible, keep stress under control, have a relaxation before going to bed. However, what if sleep still remains elusive?
Then the visit to a doctor is advisable. A person should ask his or her doctor for an evaluation, as there is treatment available, though it depends on the reason of insomnia. In case of occasional sleepless nights, sleeping pills may be useful to be taken. But taking sleeping pills does not mean at all that the underlying cause of insomnia is treated, as they only can help to get some amount of such a necessary night’s rest.
To begin with, let us have a little history. It should be pointed out that sleeping pills are not a new phenomenon at all, and centuries ago opiate laudanum as well as herbal potions were applied to induce sleepiness. In the beginning of 1900s barbiturates were introduced, and in the 1960s benzodiazepines appeared on the scene. However, by the 1990s there appeared much safer class of insomnia pills, which is known as nonbenzodiazepine hypnotics.
The sleeping pills, which are used nowadays, do not carry all the risks of dependence and lethal overdose as the sleeping medications of the previous decades did. However, there are still risk remained, and these risks are especially dangerous for people with some certain medical conditions, such as liver and / or kidney disease. Below is the description of the most widely used types of sleeping pills.
All sleeping pills are divided into the following categories: over – the – counter pills, Nonbenzodiazepine hypnotic pills, Benzodiazepine hypnotic pills and Sedating antidepressants.
Over-the-counter pills
There are bunches of over – the – counter sleeping pills, which are available in nearly every drugstore. Most of these pills contain antihistamines, which induce drowsiness by working against the person’s central nervous system chemical histamine. Nearly every of these medications is considered to be effective for an occasional sleepless night, though, the more often one takes them, the less effective their actions become. These drugs are the following:
Doxylamine. This medication has the second name – Unisom. This medicine may not be taken by pregnant women, as well as breastfeeding mothers and people, who have a history of such health conditions, as asthma, bronchitis, glaucoma, peptic ulcer, enlarged prostate. In addition, a person who takes it may not either drive or attempt any other kind of activity, which requires alertness. To possible side effects prolonged drowsiness may be referred.
Diphenhydramine. This medication has other names: Nytol, Sominex. This drug is not recommended for breastfeeding mothers, and it may be dangerous for pregnant women, as well as for people, who have a history of heart problems, glaucoma or enlarged prostate. A person, who takes this medicine, should not either drive or attempt any other kind of activity, which requires alertness. To possible side effects of this medicine dry mouth, prolonged drowsiness and dizziness may be referred.
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