Insomnia

...ba href=/insomnia/a/b and restless leg syndrome.

Or it can come from external sources — medications, health problems like gastric reflux, neurological problems like Alzheimers and Parkinsons affect sleep as do psychiatric conditions like anxiety and depression.

It's enough to keep you awake nights worrying.

ba href=/insomnia/a/b is the most common sleep problem, said Dr.

Arthur Kotch, a sleep and pulmonary specialist at the center.

"Thirty to 40 percent of the American population has ba href=/insomnia/a/b, it's a very, very high number," Kotch said.

"People are taking more sleeping aids, whether over-the-counter or prescription, than ever before," he said.

Regarding the recent alert about Ambien, in which it was reported that some people under its influence had raided their refrigerators in the middle of the night and driven without even knowing they were sleep walking, Kotch said the percentage of people affected that way is very small.

However, he warns, Ambien is fast acting.

Don't take it before driving home or you're likely to fall asleep at the wheel.

"I tell my patients you take that pill when you turn off your light to go to sleep," he said.

Taking steps to improve quality of sleep often improves quality of life, said Sandy Kantzas, the center's adminitrative coordinator.

Sometimes the solution is as simple as putting blinds on windows or removing a television from your bedroom, said Beth McCarthy, a respiratory and clinical specialist for the center.

"A good mattress makes a difference.

If you're un...

...ba href=/insomnia/a/b drug, may cause users to drive or binge eat while sleepwalking.

New prescriptions dropped 11 percent for Paris-based Sanofi-Aventis SA's Ambien and 4.2 percent for Sepracor Inc.'s Lunesta, a similar drug, in the two weeks after the New York Times reported the rare side effects, according to Verispan LLC, a health-care market research company.

Ambien generated 1.5 billion euros ($1.8 billion) of sales in 2005.

Patients may be reluctant to take the drugs as a result of the reports of side effects, doctors say.

The incidence of unusual sleep activities tied to Ambien is rare and not a cause for alarm, according to Sanofi.

Sleepwalking occurs in about 4 percent of the U.S.

population, according to the American Academy of Sleep Medicine, based in Westchester, Illinois.

``I have no doubt that any sedating agent can lead people to do strange things in the night, but it's rare, and most people who do these things are taking no medications at all,'' said psychiatrist David Neubauer, associate director of the Johns Hopkins Sleep Disorders Center in Baltimore and author of the book ``Understanding Sleeplessness: Perspectives on ba href=/insomnia/a/b.'' The New York Times reported on March 8 that Ambien was linked to traffic arrests around the nation, citing records from state toxicology laboratories.

A week later, the newspaper said researchers at the Minnesota Regional Sleep Disorders Center in Minneapolis and the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota,...

...ba href=/insomnia/a/b, or get only 3.5 hours of sleep per night, live longer than people who get more than 7.5 hours.

And there are questions about the effectiveness of sleeping pills.  A study by researchers at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and Harvard Medical School found that a change in sleep habits and attitudes was more effective in treating chronic ba href=/insomnia/a/b, over the short- and long-term, than sleeping pills (specifically Ambien).

CONTINUED: Practice safe sleeping1 Next Print this Email this MORE FROM SCIENCESwede wins $900,000 math prize.

Australian cyclone hits critters hard.

Encyclopedia writes that it was wronged.

Studies raise concern about polar warming.

Snails may show why lefties have an edge.

How science can improve your ZZZZ's.

Swede wins $900,000 math prize.

Grammar revealed in a whale's love song.

Babies decide what words to learn.

Cosmic Log: A vote for hydrogen power.

Test your science and space smarts.

Science Section Front •WP: Can prayer influence healing?

•Pope installs new cardinals•Family of slain pastor found•Blaze ends Caribbean cruise•GOP flee from Bush, but not his cash•MSNBC-TV Question of the Day•Republican's better in bed?

•Iraq: Bush blames media•Will there be justice for Imette•Double standard for female sex offender Most PopularMost Viewed•Wife, children of slain Tennessee pastor found•Did alcohol, drugs kill Natalee Holloway?

•Bush urges civility in rocky immigration debate•Cigarette eyed as cause of cruise blaze•Chirac bolts summit over ...