Insomnia? Avoid This Common Strategy If You’re Older, Experts Say

Key Takeaways

Prescription sleep drugs are impairing the physical and brain health of aging AmericansA person’s lifetime rate of falls should decline by nearly 9% if seniors stop taking sleep drugsPeople also would have sharper minds, longer life expectancy and more money, researchers project

FRIDAY, Oct. 31, 2025 (HealthDay News) — Middle-aged adults and seniors would age more gracefully — and save a few bucks – if they lay off prescription sleep medications, a new study says.

Avoiding sleep drugs would reduce older Americans’ lifetime rate of falls by nearly 9% and brain decline by 2%, researchers report in the upcoming December issue of The Lancet Regional Health-Americas .

It also would increase life expectancy by more than a month and save folks thousands of dollars, researchers