People taking just one (1) to 18 sleeping pills per year—and the average in this group was only 8 pills per year—were 3.6 times more likely to die over an average follow-up of 2.5 years compared to nonusers according to a recent study by researchers at Scripps Clinic Viterbi Family Sleep Center in La Jolla, California, USA.

Realize that this is taking sleeping pills for only 2.5 weeks a year or less which caused this dramatic increased risk of death

“Perhaps the most striking finding was that an increased hazard for death was present even in the lowest tertile of hypnotic use, such that hypnotic drugs were associated with a 3.6-fold increased risk of dying for patients using <18 hypnotic pills per year," the paper notes.

People taking just 18 to 132 sleeping pills per year—the average in this group was 57 pills per year—were 4.4 times more likely to die over an average follow-up of 2.5 years compared to nonusers according to a recent study by researchers at Scripps Clinic Viterbi Family Sleep Center in La Jolla, California, USA.

The average number of pills taken in this group was 57. This is taking sleeping pills for only two months a year which caused this dramatic increased risk of death.

People taking just more than 132 sleeping pills per year—the average in this group was 469 pills per year—were 5.3 times more likely to die over an average follow-up of 2.5 years compared to nonusers according to a recent study by researchers at Scripps Clinic Viterbi Family Sleep Center in La Jolla, California, USA.

Adjusting for poor health, things such as asthma, cardiovascular disease, kidney disease, etc, did NOT explain the increased risk of death associated with sleeping pills.
“Control of selective prescription of hypnotics for patients in poor health did not explain the observed excess mortality,” the paper notes.
Later they say, “neither the level of individual health nor the presence of particular [health problems such as asthma or cardiovascular disease or kidney disease, etc] explains the bulk of the hazard associated with the use of hypnotic medications.”

People taking just 18 to 132 sleeping pills per year—the average in this group was 57 pills per year—were 20% more likely to develop a major cancer over an average follow-up of 2.5 years compared to nonusers according to a recent study by researchers at Scripps Clinic Viterbi Family Sleep Center in La Jolla, California, USA.

People taking just more than 132 sleeping pills per year—the average in this group was 469 pills per year—were 35% more likely to develop a major cancer over an average follow-up of 2.5 years compared to nonusers according to a recent study by researchers at Scripps Clinic Viterbi Family Sleep Center in La Jolla, California, USA.

Sleeping pills are associated with an increased risk of

• depression
• suicide
• falls
• car crashes
• infections
• regurgitation
• hypertension
• heart failure
• arrhythmias
• cardiovascular diseases
• cancer, and
• death

as noted in a recent study by researchers at Scripps Clinic Viterbi Family Sleep Center in La Jolla, California, USA.

They noted that “Infections, in turn, are major causes of mortality and cancer.”

They also noted that sleeping pills may:

• increase sleep apnoea
• prolong apnoeas
• cause night eating syndrome leading to obesity
• sleeping pills have been shown to be cancer-causing in rats.


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Sleeping pills were associated with a 4.6 times greater risk of death over 2.5 years according to a recent study.

Instead of sleeping pills, you might try L-tryptophan or pumpkin seeds (which contain tryptophan), or (raw) milk instead of sleeping pills.

(See the Weston A. Price Foundation for why raw milk is better than pasteurized milk. See here or what the excellent presentation by Sally Fallon from the Weston A. Price Foundation talking about raw milk here.)

I’ve taken L-tryptophan for sleep for 30 years—occasionally for the first 11 years, and just about every night for the last 19 years. (I have NOT tried pumpkin seeds.)

More is not better.

If I take too much, I will wake up after 3-4 hours.

I’d prefer to take a small dose (500 mg) and bedtime, and then if I wake up too early, take another small dose (250-500 mg).

If I eat chicken or turkey at night, I will NOT take the tryptophan at bedtime.

If I drink raw milk late at night, I will reduce the dose of tryptophan to 250 mg because milk contains tryptophan.

I have also found that taking larger doses of iodine for the past several years has reduce the amount of tryptophan I need.

I have very little experience with 5-HTP—5-hydroxy-L-tryptophan—which is made in our bodies from L-tryptophan.

However, I have read that 5-HTP can cause stimulation several hours later, so be aware of this. L-tryptophan makes more sense to me than 5-HTP since this is what is found in our diet.

“One-in-five children are affected by excess body weight across all countries, and in Greece, the United States and Italy the figure is closer to one third. Only in China, Korea and Turkey are 10% or less of children overweight,” notes a recent report from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) which has been around for 50 years.

“Only in China, Korea and Turkey are 10% or less of children overweight.

“In most countries, boys have higher rates of overweight and obesity than do girls.

“Girls tend to have higher rates in Nordic countries (Sweden, Norway, Denmark), as well as in the United Kingdom, the Netherlands and Australia,”

The attached chart shows that 35% of US boys aged 5-17, and 36% of US girls are overweight or obese, and that 37% of Greek boys and 45% of Greek girls are overweight or obese.

These two countries have the biggest childhood obesity problem.

At the bottom of the list as the countries with the lowest rates of childhood obesity are:

• 4.5% Girls in China
• 5.9% of Boys in China
• 9.9% of Girls in Korea
• 16.2% of Boys in Korea
• 10.3% of Girls in Turkey
• 11.3% of Boys in Turkey

“One-in-five children are affected by excess body weight across all countries, and in Greece, the United States and Italy the figure is closer to one third. Only in China, Korea and Turkey are 10% or less of children overweight,” notes a recent report from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) which has been around for 50 years.

“Only in China, Korea and Turkey are 10% or less of children overweight.

“In most countries, boys have higher rates of overweight and obesity than do girls.

“Girls tend to have higher rates in Nordic countries (Sweden, Norway, Denmark), as well as in the United Kingdom, the Netherlands and Australia,”

“The prevalence of obesity… varies tenfold among [34] countries, from a low of 4% in Japan and Korea, to 30% or more in the United States and Mexico,” notes a recent report from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) which has been around for 50 years.

It’s mission is to “promote policies that will improve the economic and social well-being of people around the world.”

“In Chile, Turkey and Mexico, a greater proportion of women are obese, whereas in the Russian Federation, Luxembourg and Spain men are more likely to be obese,” notes a recent report from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) which has been around for 50 years.

It’s mission is to “promote policies that will improve the economic and social well-being of people around the world.”

“Obesity prevalence has more than doubled over the past 20 years in Australia and New Zealand, and increased by half in the United Kingdom and the United States,” notes a recent report from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) which has been around for 50 years.

It’s mission is to “promote policies that will improve the economic and social well-being of people around the world.”

“Obesity prevalence has more than doubled over the past 20 years in Australia and New Zealand, and increased by half in the United Kingdom and the United States,” notes a recent report from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) which has been around for 50 years.

“Some 20-24% of adults in Australia, Canada, the United Kingdom and Ireland are obese, about the same rate as in the United States in the early 1990s,” notes a recent report from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) which has been around for 50 years.

“Obesity almost doubled in both the Netherlands and the United Kingdom, even though the current rate in the Netherlands is around half that in the United Kingdom.”

“In most countries, the rise in obesity has affected all population groups, regardless of sex, age, race, income or education level, but to varying extents,” notes a recent report from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) which has been around for 50 years.

“Evidence from a number of countries (Australia, Austria, Canada, France, Italy, Korea, Spain, the United Kingdom and the United States) indicates that obesity tends to be more common among individuals in disadvantaged socio-economic groups, especially women.

“There is also a relationship between the number of years spent in full-time education and obesity, with the most educated individuals displaying lower rates.

“Again, the gradient in obesity is stronger in women than in men.”

“The rise in overweight and obesity is a major public health concern,” notes a recent report from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) which has been around for 50 years.

“Obesity is a known risk factor for numerous health problems, including hypertension, high cholesterol, diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, respiratory problems (asthma), musculoskeletal diseases (arthritis) and some forms of cancer.

“Mortality risk also increases sharply once the overweight threshold is crossed (Sassi, 2010).”

Here is a table showing the prevalence of obesity in males versus females in various countries.

Obesity among US male adults is 32.2%, whereas obesity among US female adults is 35.5%.

It is from a recent report from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).

Obesity among US adults has increased from 23% in 1990 to 31% in 2000 to 34% in 2009 as shown in the attached chart from a recent report from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).

Every one serving increase of unprocessed red meat per day associated with 13% greater risk of death over 22 to 28 years according to two studies analyzed by researchers from the Harvard School of Public Health in Boston, Massachusetts, USA.

Every one serving increase of processed red meat per day associated with 20% greater risk of death over 22 to 28 years according to two studies analyzed by researchers from the Harvard School of Public Health in Boston, Massachusetts, USA.

Every one serving increase of unprocessed red meat per day associated with 18% greater risk of death from cardiovascular disease (CVD) over 22 to 28 years according to two studies analyzed by researchers from the Harvard School of Public Health in Boston, Massachusetts, USA.

Every one serving increase of processed red meat per day associated with 21% greater risk of death from cardiovascular disease (CVD) over 22 to 28 years according to two studies analyzed by researchers from the Harvard School of Public Health in Boston, Massachusetts, USA.

Every one serving increase of unprocessed red meat per day associated with 10% greater risk of death from cancer (CVD) over 22 to 28 years according to two studies analyzed by researchers from the Harvard School of Public Health in Boston, Massachusetts, USA.

Every one serving increase of unprocessed red meat per day associated with 16% greater risk of death from cancer (CVD) over 22 to 28 years according to two studies analyzed by researchers from the Harvard School of Public Health in Boston, Massachusetts, USA.