What is a sedative hypnotic?

Dr. Kripke uses the phrase 'hypnotic prescriptions'. What does that mean?

'Hypnotic' is a technical word that refers to a sleeping pill. The most usually prescribed sleeping pills are classified as 'sedative hypnotics'.

A 'hypnotic prescription' is a prescription for this type of sleeping pill.

Here's Dr. Kripke's quotation again:

Receiving hypnotic prescriptions was associated with greater than threefold increased hazards of death even when prescribed fewer than 18 pills/year. This association held in separate analyses for several commonly used hypnotics and for newer shorter-acting drugs.

Hypnotics' association with mortality or cancer: a matched cohort study

Daniel Kripke et al. BMJOpen 2012

To your natural happiness!

Lucinda