Sleeping Pills Increase the Risk of Dementia, 4 Tips to Treat Insomnia Naturally

Nearly one-third of Americans have insomnia, according to a recent survey, and most of them are likely to treat the condition with self-medication. However, a 2023 study found that people who regularly use sleeping pills have an almost 80 percent increased risk of dementia compared to those who rarely use them.

The study followed approximately 3,000 older whites and blacks without dementia for an average of nine years. It found that white participants who used sleeping pills regularly had a 79 percent increased risk of developing dementia compared to those who rarely used them.

Insomnia refers to sleep disorders such as difficulty falling asleep, poor sleep quality, and waking up too early. In the long run, this can seriously impact one’s health and daily life. For example, prolonged insomnia can lead to slowed reaction time, memory loss, emotional instability, and inability to cope with busy work schedules.

In addition, another study found that insomnia increases the risk of high blood pressure, coronary heart disease, cerebrovascular disease, and the like.

Methods to Treat Insomnia

A good night’s sleep is highly critical to your health. However, prolonged reliance on sleeping pills can increase the risk of dementia. If you have insomnia, you may want to consider an integrative medicine approach.

1. Behavioral Therapy: Treat insomnia by changing sleep habits, establishing a conducive sleep environment, and controlling sleep interruptions.
2. Psychotherapy: Cognitive behavioral therapy, hypnotherapy, etc., can help patients clarify their thinking and emotional problems, thereby improving their ability to sleep.
3. Biofeedback Therapy: By detecting physiological indicators, such as heartbeat and breathing, patients are taught to master self-regulation techniques to improve insomnia.

Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) considers insomnia a disease caused by mental disturbance, spleen deficiency, qi stagnation, and liver fire.

TCM Treatments for Insomnia:

Food therapies: A Chinese medicinal diet is nutritious and delicious and helps regulate the body’s functions. Choose foods according to different physical conditions. Commonly used foods for insomnia include:

1. Black sesame paste: black sesame is hot in nature, nourishes the liver and kidneys, is moistening and has a laxative effect, and can specifically improve insomnia. Black sesame seeds can be ground into a powder, added water and sugar, and cooked to serve.
2. Corn silk tea: corn silk is cool in nature, can clear heat, is a diuretic, soothing, and a tranquilizer. Clean the fresh corn silk; dry it; soak it in water; then boil it into a tea.
3. Banana porridge: bananas are rich in magnesium, which helps relax and relieve the nervous system and improve insomnia symptoms. Bananas can be chopped and added to rice porridge.
4. Lotus seeds and lilies porridge: Lotus seeds are mild in nature, sweet in taste, and can calm the mind and nourish the heart and spleen; lilies are sweet and slightly cold in nature, and can clear and calm the mind. You can cook lotus seeds, lilies, and rice together to make a porridge that will help with insomnia.

Diet Therapy: TCM believes diet can also affect sleep quality. For example, dinner should be light—avoid spicy, greasy, and stimulating foods.

Herbal Medicine: Chinese medicine is commonly used to treat insomnia, such as coptis rhizome, salvia root, and gastrodia tuber. TCM believes Chinese medicine can regulate the body’s qi and blood, reduce emotional stress, and thus improve insomnia symptoms.

Massage and Acupuncture Therapy: Acupuncture therapy in TCM can regulate the movement of qi and blood in the body to improve insomnia symptoms. Massage of the following points can also improve insomnia.

Taiyang acupoint. (The Epoch Times)

Heart Shu acupoint. (The Epoch Times)

Spirit Gate acupoint. (The Epoch Times)

TCM treatment for insomnia emphasizes comprehensive conditioning. It includes adjusting diet, lifestyle, Chinese medicine treatment, and acupuncture therapy, to adjust the body’s yin and yang balance and qi and blood flow. If insomnia seriously affects your daily life, you should seek the help of a professional doctor.

*Some herbs mentioned in this article may be unfamiliar, but they are generally available in Asian supermarkets.

Note: Because different people have different physiques, it is recommended to consult your doctor or TCM experts.