According to a recent survey, nearly a third of Americans suffer from insomnia, and most of them do are likely to self-medicate the condition. However, a 2023 study found that people who regularly use sleeping pills have an almost 80 percent increased risk of dementia compared to those who rarely use them.
The study followed about 3,000 older whites and blacks without dementia for an average of nine years. It found that white participants who regularly used sleeping pills had a 79 percent increased risk of developing dementia compared to those who rarely used them.
Insomnia refers to sleep disorders such as difficulty falling asleep, poor sleep quality and waking up too early. In the long term, this can have serious consequences for health and daily life. For example, prolonged insomnia can lead to slowed reaction time, memory loss, emotional instability, and the inability to cope with busy work schedules.
In addition, another study found that insomnia increases the risk of high blood pressure, coronary heart disease, cerebrovascular disease and the like.
Methods to treat insomnia
A good night’s sleep is very important for your health. However, long-term dependence on sleeping pills can increase the risk of dementia. If you suffer from insomnia, you may want to consider an integrative medicine approach.
- Behavioral therapy: Treat insomnia by changing sleep habits, establishing a favorable sleep environment, and controlling sleep interruptions.
- Psychotherapy: Cognitive behavioral therapy, hypnotherapy, etc. can help patients clear up their thinking and emotional problems, improving their ability to sleep.
- Biofeedback Therapy: By detecting physiological indicators, such as heart rate and respiration, patients learn to master self-regulation techniques to improve insomnia.
Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) considers insomnia to be a disease caused by mental disorders, spleen deficiency, qi stagnation, and liver fire.
TCM Treatments For Insomnia:
Nutritional therapies: A Chinese medicinal diet is nutritious and delicious and helps regulate body functions. Choose food according to different physical conditions. Common foods for insomnia include:
- Black Sesame Paste: black sesame is hot in nature, nourishes the liver and kidneys, is moisturizing and has a laxative effect, and can specifically improve insomnia. Black sesame seeds can be ground into a powder, added water and sugar, and cooked to serve.
- Corn Silk Tea: corn silk is cool in nature, can clear heat, is a diuretic, soothing and calming. Clean the fresh corn silk; dry It; soak it in water; then boil it into a tea.
- banana porridge: bananas are rich in magnesium, which helps relax and relieves the nervous system and improves insomnia symptoms. Bananas can be chopped and added to rice porridge.
- Lotus seeds and lily porridge: Lotus seeds are mild in nature, sweet in taste and can soothe the mind and nourish the heart and spleen; lilies are sweet and a little cold in nature and can clear and calm the mind. You can cook lotus seeds, lilies and rice together to make a porridge that helps with insomnia.
Diet Therapy: TCM believes that diet can also affect sleep quality. For example, dinner should be light – avoid spicy, greasy and stimulating foods.
Herbal Medicine: Chinese medicine is often used to treat insomnia, such as coptis rhizome, salvia root and gastrodia tuber. TCM believes that Chinese medicine can regulate the body’s qi and blood, reduce emotional stress, and thus improve the symptoms of insomnia.
Massage and Acupuncture Therapy: Acupuncture therapy in TCM can regulate the movement of qi and blood in the body to improve insomnia symptoms. Massage of the following points can also improve insomnia.
TCM treatment for insomnia emphasizes extensive conditioning. It includes adjusting diet, lifestyle, Chinese medicine treatment and acupuncture therapy to adjust the body’s yin and yang balance and qi and blood flow. If insomnia seriously affects your daily life, you should seek the help of a professional doctor.
*Some of the spices mentioned in this article may be unfamiliar, but they are generally available in Asian supermarkets.
Remark: Since different people have different physiques, it is advisable to consult your doctor or TCM experts.