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It’s normal to experience some difficulty dropping off to sleep every now and then, but about a fifth of the population struggle to sleep every single night. Insomnia increases the risk of depression and anxiety.
Now a new study involving more than 487,000 people has found that it also raises the risk of heart attacks and strokes by almost a fifth. The findings by a team at Beijing University, and published in the journal Neurology, underline just how important good quality sleep is for physical and mental health.
But treatment for insomnia is limited and few people ever get to see a specialist, when you haven’t had a proper night’s sleep for weeks on end and are faced with yet another agonising night, anything that might help you drop one is worth a try and one don’t think about the consequences.
Many cases of insomnia can be addressed through behavioural change, and there are some excellent NHS sleep clinics that offer effective treatments such as talking therapy. Using drug or drinkign before bed time to increase the chance of sleeping have dangerous adverse effects.
DR MAX PEMBERTON FOR THE DAILY MAIL