Sleep disorders have become another major epidemic. According to recent research, over 70 million Americans suffer from such disorders, 60% of which are chronic. An estimated 20% - 40% of adults suffer from insomnia each year. In one study, 54% of adults reported that they had experienced at least one symptom of insomnia in the past year. Last year alone, 50 million prescriptions were filled for sleeping pills. Sleeping problems are estimated to add $15.9 billion in health care costs each year.

Research in the UK indicates that sleepiness accounts for an estimated 20% of of all motor vehicle accidents there and has been proven to be as dangerous as drunk driving. A whopping 34% of drivers who drove more than 20,000 miles a year admitted they had fallen asleep at the wheel during the previous 12 months.

This problem includes over 2 million children in the U.S. It's estimated that between 30 and 40% of children get less than the 9 to 10 hours of sleep they require each night.

Interestingly, sleep problems are about twice as common with women as with men. Pregnancy, as well as menopause and hormone changes, are major contributing factors here.

These problems are also more prominent with people over 65, over half of whom suffer from disturbed sleep. Although Americans in this age group account for about 13% of the population, they consume over 40% of prescribed sleeping medications.

Sleep deprivation is also highly correlated with obesity and is clearly a major contributing factor in many diseases. Some weight loss experts believe, for example, that getting an adequate amount of sleep is an absolutely necessary condition to successful long-term weight loss.

There are two main types of insomnia: 1) Difficulty falling asleep; and 2) waking up and not being able to get back to sleep. In research studies, about 40% of the people report that their main problem is with falling asleep, while the rest say that waking up and not being able to get back to sleep is most problematic.

Since chronic use of most sleeping medications leads to habituation, as well as other problematic side effects (e.g., daytime grogginess), there is a huge need for alternative, healthy ways to improve sleep. Fortunately, there are a number of natural sleep remedies, many of which have been well-tested for hundreds of years and are known to be generally safe and effective for many people. They include Lemon Balm, Melatonin, Lavender, Chamomile, Hops, Valerian, and L-Theanine.

Recently developed formulations, that include a combination of these ingredients have been found to be effective as solutions to both of the two most common sleep problems outlined above, without any of the negative side effects associated with prescription drugs. One of the newest of these entails a "staged formula," one part of which promotes falling asleep, while the other, time-released ingredients help in getting back to sleep later in the night.

Some simple lifestyle changes can also help contribute to better sleep. They include the following: Sleeping in a room that is totally dark; reserving your bedroom only for sleeping and sex; refraining from active exercise before bedtime; not ingesting caffeine in any form in the late afternoon or evening; engaging in some form of relaxing activity that induces sleepiness before going to bed.

Anyone suffering from sleep problems, therefore, is well-advised to consider such lifestyle changes, along with natural sleep remedies before resorting to taking prescription drugs.