Shaffer 1

Megan Shaffer

Professor Cook

ENG 1201

20 March 2021

How does exercise help insomnia?

Most people would agree that regular physical exercise is good for you and can improve

one’s health. It is often prescribed by doctors to help with cardiovascular health, weight

maintenance and diabetes. However, most don’t realize the benefits exercise can have on a

person's mental health. Depression, anxiety and insomnia are mental health conditions many

people struggle to manage and all are often treated with medication. Exercise is often overlooked

as a method to treat these conditions and can be more effective in treating insomnia than

medications.

One written and researched article is by Giselle Soares Passos, Dalva Lucia Rollemberg

Poyares, Marcos Gonçalves Santana, Sergio Tufik,and Marco Túlio de MelloI from The National

Center for Biotechnology Information, also known as NCBI. The authors provide information for

studies done in countries other than the United States. One of the studies done was completed in

Brazil in 2000. It states, “People aged 25 years or older demonstrated that physically active

individuals have fewer complaints of insomnia than sedentary individuals.” This article also

provides information towards specific age groups. Elderly residents from nursing homes or

assisted living facilities had mixed results.

 Shaffer 1

One study was done on the effects of three different types of exercises. Those include

moderate aerobic exercise (walking), intense aerobic exercise (running), and moderate resistance

exercise (weight lifting). The end result was that moderate aerobic exercise gives the best results.

When comparing drugs versus exercise, they discovered that improvements after exercise are

similar to improvements after drug use, though this doesn’t include the side effects of taking the

drug.

Carol DerSarkissian wrote an article titled “Understanding Insomnia - Treatment”

published from WedMD.com. The article begins by telling the audience about medications that

are used as treatments for insomnia. People with medical conditions like diabetes or menopause

can have insomnia as a symptom of their condition. According to DerSarkissian, if insomnia is a

side effect of a medication, changing the medication or its timing or dose may help. Many people

also have short-term insomnia which is often caused by traveling or stress. This insomnia is

usually resolved once the stress is removed and they have adjusted to a new schedule.

Later on in the article, DerSarkissian discusses medications taken for helping insomnia.

DerSarkissian writes, “Benzodiazepine sedatives such as triazolam (Halcion), estazolam,

lorazepam (Ativan), temazepam (Restoril), flurazepam, and quazepam (Doral) and

non-benzodiazepine sedatives such as zolpidem (Ambien, Intermezzo), eszopiclone (Lunesta),

and zaleplon (Sonata) are drugs that can help induce sleep.” Everyone who has had to take

medication knows that they all include side effects and as DerSarkissian mentions one of the

biggest side effects of the drugs included above are the chance of some individuals getting

addicted to them if used frequently.

 Shaffer 1

In an article written by Sandee LaMotte called, “The Healthiest Way to Improve your

Sleep: Exercise” from Gale in Context found from Sinclairs Library, the author speaks about

exercise improving sleep. LaMotte gives an example of a group of older women who have

insomnia. The study showed that the women’s sleeping went from poor to good when they

exercised. Arizona State University did research on exercise and sleeping pills. They suggested

that pills are more effective than exercise. However, considering the possible negative side

effects of the medications, they concluded exercise is a healthier choice when comparing the

two. According to Shawn Youngstedt, Arizona State University sleep researcher, "Sleeping pills

are extremely hazardous.” Also spoken by Youngstedt, "They are as bad as smoking a pack of

cigarettes a day. Not to mention they cause infections, falling and dementia in the elderly.”

Exercise is not only healthier, it is also less expensive and also has many other benefits.

Those who exercise also experience more energy and are less depressed. Those with insomnia

tend to be overweight or obese. Exercise also allows them to have a greater chance of weight

loss. The types of exercises researched in this article are aerobic exercises. This includes

walking, biking, elliptical machines, or any other exercises that increase heart rate. Lastly, the

article compared the best time of day it is to exercise. People believe that it isn’t good to exercise

at night and that it should be avoided, however that is a myth. Experts say how it depends upon

the schedule that those have in place. They do believe that exercising in the morning is an easier

way to keep exercise more consistent.

A research article written by Ida Hollsten, Billa Mouritsardottir Foldbo, Merethe Kirstine

Kousgaard Andersen and Jørgen Nexøe is titled “Insomnia in the elderly: reported reasons and

their associations with medication in general practice in Denmark.” This article is from EBSCO

which was found through the Sinclair library. It begins by giving statistics of how 30-50% of
 Shaffer 1

adults have difficulty falling asleep. Also discovered, is as age increases the chance of insomnia

symptoms increases. In the article, reasons for insomnia symptoms are discussed. These include

psychiatric diagnosis, life crisis, loneliness, and poor sleep hygiene . The article gives reasons

for the increase of insomnia symptoms in the elderly and explains how medications are given to

many people who suffer with insomnia.

According to the research article, the most frequently prescribed medications were

hypnotics (56%) and mirtazapine/mianserin (34%). General practitioners do not focus on

prescribing medication during the first visits, though more than 50% of patients will usually

receive them. It is common for older people to be put on sleep medications. Many studies that

have been done discuss pharmacological treatment. Hypnotics should be used as a short term

drug, although often they are not. The medications benzodiazepines and antipsychotic are

recommended to be avoided due to side effects. Lastly, melatonin is also not always suggested

due to an inconsistent effect from taking the drug.

The Sleep Foundation published an article called “Exercise and Insomnia.” This article is

written by Danielle Pacheco. It begins by giving research statistics, telling us that those with

insomnia who begin to exercise daily can fall asleep around 13 minutes quicker and sleep 18

minutes longer. A part of the article is titled “How does Exercise Help Treat Insomnia?” This

talks about how core body temperature increases during exercise and lowers after the exercise is

completed. This effect happens the same as when people are getting ready to sleep. As stated by

Pacheco, “The similarity between these changes may signal to your brain that it’s time to sleep.”

Later on in the article, a question is asked that reads, “Can Exercise Cause Insomnia?” The

answer to it is no, though the choice of times people decide to exercise, meaning if it is too close

to someone's bedtime, can affect them when they are trying to fall asleep. Lastly, Pacheco talks
 Shaffer 1

about the best types of exercises for insomnia. These include moderate-intensity aerobic

exercise, like walking.

 Shaffer 1

Works Cited

DerSarkissian, Carol. “Chronic and Short-Term Insomnia Treatments and Medications.”

WebMD, WebMD, 20 July 2019,

www.webmd.com/sleep-disorders/understanding-insomnia-treatment.

Passos, Giselle Soares, et al. “Is Exercise an Alternative Treatment for Chronic Insomnia?”

Clinics (Sao Paulo, Brazil), Hospital Das Clínicas Da Faculdade De Medicina Da

Universidade De São Paulo, June 2012,

www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3370319/.

LaMotte, Sandee. “The Healthiest Way to Improve Your Sleep: Exercise Citation

Metadata.” Gale, 30 May 2017,

link.gale.com/apps/doc/A493478445/OVIC?u=dayt30401&sid=OVIC&xid=ddf5a50e.

Hollsten, Ida, et al. “Insomnia in the Elderly: Reported Reasons and Their Associations

with Medication in General Practice in Denmark.” June 2020.

Pacheco, Danielle. “Exercise and Insomnia: Can Physical Activity Combat Insomnia?”

Sleep Foundation, 11 Dec. 2020,

www.sleepfoundation.org/insomnia/exercise-and-insomnia.