Anti-anxiety, sleeping pills may double risk of death
Posted by staff / March 31, 2014 Anti-anxietyhypnotic drugsrisk of mortalityScott Weich
A new large study shows that several anxiolytic (anti-anxiety) drugs or hypnotic drugs (sleeping pills) are associated with a doubling in the risk of mortality. Although these findings are based on routine data and need to be interpreted cautiously, the researchers recommend that a greater understanding of the drugs’ impact is essential.
“The key message here is that we really do have to use these drugs more carefully,” says Scott Weich, professor of psychiatry at the University of Warwick. “This builds on a growing body of evidence suggesting that their side effects are significant and dangerous. We have to do everything possible to minimize over reliance on anxiolytics and sleeping pills.”
Full story at Futurity.
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