Staying Healthy

How to kick the sleeping pill habit

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When people who use risky sleeping pills receive the right information, they are more likely to work with their doctors to taper off the medications and adopt safer methods to combat insomnia, according to a study in JAMA Internal Medicine.

Doctors have long cautioned people about using drugs called benzodiazepines as long-term sleep aids. Such drugs include alprazolam (Xanax), clonazepam (Klonopin), and lorazepam (Ativan). The drugs' sedating effects can linger, leading to falls and accidents. Many find it hard to get off these drugs because of withdrawal symptoms and sleeplessness that often follow.

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