So do sleeping pills cause high blood pressure (hypertension), or is it all part of an unhealthy lifestyle pattern where poor sleep and high blood pressure go together?
Nobody is sure, but researchers suspect sleeping pills could be playing a significant part because people already taking an antihypertensive are more likely to increase the dose, or take a second drug, if they are also taking a pill for their insomnia.
Researchers from University Autonoma of Madrid looked at the sleeping habits and medications of 752 people who were aged 60 and older. Nearly 40 per cent slept poorly, and around 17 per cent regularly took a sleeping pill—and during the lifetime of the study, 156 of the participants increased the number of antihypertensives they were taking.
From that, the researchers estimate that people taking a sleeping pill were 85 per cent more likely to increase the dose of their antihypertensive medication.