CHECK Magazin - Gesundheitsmagazin für Männer No.17

Pharmacology
Sleeping is one of our basic needs and an
indispensable part of our biorhythm. A good balance
between waking and sleeping phases is essential for
physical and mental health. But sleeping properly
is easier said than done, because our sleep phases
also suffer from our stressful, light- and noisepolluted
environment. If sleep does not provide
the necessary mental recovery in the long term and
does not give the body the opportunity to regenerate
sufficiently, people become ill.
Sleep hygiene offers a solution here.
Pop a pill, sleep, done
An entire industry has developed around our sleep
problems: preparations with herbal active ingredients
in drugstores and pharmacies, prescription
drugs in various strengths, meditation courses, sleep
apps, special pillows and mattresses, sound emitters
and fragrance dispensers ... the non-sleeping
consumer is spoiled for choice. Is it all about money?
Should you go straight for the meds? Who better to
answer these questions than a young entrepreneur
whose day always has too few hours and for whom
“sleeping in” is a foreign concept – my boss Nico.
Alex: When asked if they slept well, most
people can only answer with a yawn and
bags under their eyes. Why?
Nico: There are many triggers for sleep
disorders, from overstimulation and
modern media, stress and pressure to
perform at work and/or in the family,
to unusual working hours, emotional problems
and certain illnesses. So if you are looking for
help, you should first try to determine the type of
sleep disorder which you have, and what’s causing
it. Where a glass of Brandy used to help, people
nowadays prefer to borrow a few tablets from aunt
Hilda because they help so well. While alcohol
is widely acknowledged as a bad problem solver,
prescription drug abuse is still accepted. This is
especially dangerous in the case of sleeping pills
and tranquillisers for two reasons: problems are
postponed, but the causes of the sleep problems are
rarely eliminated, and issues such as dependency,
addiction potential and effects are trivialised.
“Problems are postponed, but the
causes of the sleep problems are
rarely eliminated, and issues such
as dependency, addiction potential
and side effects are trivialised.”
There are only a few over-the-counter
preparations of chemically synthesised
substances available. When and how
should they be used?
Nico: Synthetic sleeping pills have a
high addictive potential, which is why
all but one group of substances require
a prescription. These substances
should not be taken for longer than 4 weeks
and should be avoided in combination with
alcohol, coke, and amphetamines. All of these
substances alter the natural sleep profile with
their sleep- promoting effect and thus become
part of the problem. In the case of insomnia,
non- benzodiazepine antagonists (or Z-substances),
which are now considered the drugs of
choice, are often the only options, making a visit to
the doctor unavoidable. Hypnotics have a calming,
anxiolytic, anticonvulsant and sleep-promoting
effect in varying degrees, but many of them can
only be broken down slowly, which often leads to
the famous “hangover” the next morning.
In self-medication, there are some first-generation
antihistamines that are now on the market as
sleeping pills. The substances were developed to
dampen allergy symptoms, but this effect fell short
of the side effect of causing severe drowsiness. In
older people, too short a sleep phase or taking
the drug for longer than 2 weeks can also lead to
balance problems, drowsiness and confusion. This
increases the risk of falls. Attention must also be
paid to interactions when taking other medications
at the same time.
33 CHECK MAG #17