A recent study has revealed that symptoms of insomnia may play a role in the relationship between suicide risk and alcohol use. The study tells that the aimed assessment and particular sleep problem treatment may lessen suicide risk among alcohol users.
Suicide risk in women is significantly associated with alcohol use based on the study. But further analysis disclosed that symptoms of insomnia explained an important proportion of the relationship between suicide risk and alcohol. There is no direct relationship between use of alcohol and suicide risk among men. However, there is an indirect but significant effect on use of alcohol to the increase of suicide risk because of insomnia symptoms.
Michael Nadorff, PhD, assistant professor at Mississippi State University, Starkville, Mississippi, and the principal investigator said that the results are significant because "they help demonstrate that alcohol use is associated with an increase in suicide risk, and that this increase may be partially due to insomnia symptoms." He also added that they can design better interventions so that suicide risk will be reduced "By better understanding this relationship, and the mechanisms associated with increased risk."
10 percent of people, according to the American Academy of Sleep Medicine, have chronic insomnia disorder. The two types of insomnia, the 'sleep disturbance' and associated daytime symptoms' usually occur in women than men.
375 undergraduate students in public, large university in Southeastern US are involved in the study. They answered the online questionnaire that tested symptoms of insomnia, nightmares, use of alcohol and the risk of suicide. Excessive use of alcohol causes about 88,000 deaths each year in the U.S. alone and shortens the life of those who suffered death by about 30 years as reported by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. CDC also reported that suicide, totaling greater than 38,000 deaths a year, ranks 10th as cause of death in the United States.