Sleep is one the most important activities a human body needs to regulate its function. It is especially necessary for the brain after it has been active for a long time. As such, sleeping disorders have both physical and mental repercussions for any person.
Insomnia is a sleeping disorder where the victim faces difficulty in falling or staying asleep. It can be broadly classified in two types. In acute insomnia, a person feels sleeplessness for a short period of time, whereas in chronic insomnia, sleep loss occurs for three or more nights over a week for a month.
Insomnia is majorly evident in people who suffer from emotional or physical discomfort, jet lag, prior medical conditions such as Shift Work Sleep Disorder, Narcolepsy, excessive intake of stimulants, or improper sleep hygiene practices.
Insomnia is one of the most common sleeping disorder and affects more than one quarter of the people in the world. Although the impact of insomnia threatens a lot of people, there is very little knowledge about it.
Discussed here are 10 lesser known facts about insomnia.
1. Insomnia can be hereditary
A research on genome-wide analysis of insomnia disorder found that insomnia was connected to certain genetic variations on chromosomes 7 and 9. The chromosome 7 is found close to a gene linked in brain development and electrical signalling for sleep. Similarly, a research on Sleep Journal said about 35 percent of people with insomnia had history of insomnia in their family.
2. Pets can have insomnia too
Some pets were found to have sleep disorders too. Canine insomnia is often termed to be a symptom of anxiety, stress or undetected chronic medical condition in dogs. It can also occur due to lack of proper exercise and is often observed in older dogs.
3. Sleeping pills do not cure insomnia
Sleeping pills are often prescribed for insomniacs. According to the National Sleep Foundation, 1 in 4 Americans take some type of medication every year to help them sleep. However, sleep specialists do not have any evidence for medications that can cure insomnia. They focus more on cognitive therapy lessons for patients to help them sleep better.
4. Women are more likely to have insomnia
According to National Sleep Foundation, women are two times more likely to have insomnia than men. Sleeplessness during night time in women is seen due to frequent hormonal changes because of their menstruation cycles, pregnancy, menopause, or similar reasons.
5. Insomnia can be fatal
Fatal familial insomnia is a rare genetic disease caused by a protein formed due to a genetic abnormality. This disease prevents a person from falling asleep, and thus leading to death due to sleep deprivation. It also affects brain function, causes memory loss, lack of motor functions and hallucinations.
6. Insomnia increases alcohol abuse
According to a study published in the American Journal of Psychiatry, participants with insomnia were about twice as likely to report using alcohol to sleep, compared with those without insomnia. Insomnia if not treated in the right way can increase alcohol abuse, thus giving rise to other liver and lung diseases.
7. Insomnia increases risk of car accidents
According to the study conducted by National Healthy Sleep Awareness Project, people who had difficulty falling asleep were two times more likely to die from a motor vehicle injury and 1.5 times more likely to die from any other fatal injury than people who don’t suffer from sleep disorders.
8. Chronic smoking can lead to insomnia in adults
Several researches on insomnia has found that chronic cigarette smokers tend to have more cases of insomnia symptoms which include lack of sleep, longer sleep latency, higher rapid eye movement, sleep density, and more episodes of obstructive sleep apnea.
9. Insomnia can trigger migraines
A survey research by UNC done on poor sleeping habits found that people with poor sleep hygiene reported having chronic headaches and feeling tired after waking up. Migraine patients who changed and improved their sleep hygiene routines had significant improvements in frequency and intensity of their headaches.
10. Yoga can help with insomnia
Yoga doesn’t cure insomnia, but it helps reduce the stress and anxiety which is sometimes the cause of the sleeplessness. Yoga serves as a complementary method to address the issue of sleeplessness in a holistic way.
Looking for insomnia treatment?
Swacon International Hospital specializes in sleep care and our trained sleep care professional have been providing consultations to diagnose and treat sleep disorders like insomnia, sleep apnea, snoring, and more.
Our full range of Sleep Care Services include Maintenance of Wakefulness Test (MWT), Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (CPAP), Multiple Sleep Latency Test (MSLT), and Polysomnography (PSG).
To book an appointment, please call us at +977-1-4478105 or email us at info@swaconhospital.com.
Health for All