Caution- Regular use of sleeping pills may increase Blood Pressure

SPAIN: Regular use of sleeping pills may have an impact on blood pressure (BP) and chronic sleeping pills users may require more antihypertensive drugs, according to a recent study.

High blood pressure is a common condition in which the long-term force of the blood against artery walls is high enough that it may eventually cause complications such as heart attack. Several studies have reported that sleep disorders and insomnia are associated with an increased risk of hypertension and that patients with hypertension often suffer from insomnia and therefore may take sleeping pills.

The prospective cohort study of 752 older adults with hypertension, was published in the journal Geriatrics & Gerontology International. The study found that older adults who regularly consumed sleeping pills increasingly used antihypertensive medications over time.

Little is known about the relationship between sleeping characteristics and antihypertensive medication. José R Banegas, University Autonoma of Madrid, Madrid, Spain, and colleagues conducted the study to examine the association of sleep quality or duration and the use of sleeping pills with the number of antihypertensive drugs used in older adults.

"Previous reports on associations of sleep characteristics with blood pressure and hypertension were focused on middle-aged adults; however these associations were absent or inconsistent among older adults," said Dr. Banegas.

The study involved 752 older adults with high BP who were followed from 2008-2010 through 2012-2013. The analyses were carried out with logistic regression and adjusted for demographics, lifestyle, comorbidity, baseline number of antihypertensive drugs and hypertension control.

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Key findings of the study include:

• Among the 752 participants at baseline (mean age 69.9 years, 49.2% men), the mean sleep duration was 6.9 h/day, 37% had poor sleep quality, 16.5% usually consumed sleeping pills and the mean number of antihypertensive drugs was 1.8.


• During the follow‐up period, 156 (20.7%) patients increased the number of antihypertensive drugs.


• No association was found between sleep duration or quality and the change in antihypertensive drug use.


• Usual sleeping pills consumption was associated with a higher risk of increasing (vs decreasing/maintaining) the number of antihypertensive drugs.

Also Read: High BP of more than 130 mmHg linked to less cognitive decline in elderly

"Sleeping pill use" might be an indicator of future needs of antihypertensive treatment, and a warning indicator to investigate underlying sleep disorders or unhealthy lifestyles," write the authors, adding that additional research is needed to understand this link.

For detailed study log on to https://doi.org/10.1111/ggi.13660