Large New Study Links Benzodiazepine Use to Lung Cancer and Cancer of the Airways

Alarming new research shows that sleeping aids taken by millions of people around the world could treble the risk of lung cancer.

The study, involving nearly 300,000 people, found that taking benzodiazepine drugs on a regular basis is linked to a greater risk of deadly tumors of the mouth, nose and windpipe. Scientists warned the more sleep aids a person takes and the longer they take them, the greater the danger, according to DailyMail.com.

A team of scientists at the Norwegian Institute of Public Health analyzed the records of thousands of public sector employees. The researchers quizzed the participants on their sleeping patterns, the use of all types of sleeping pills, and followed up over the course of nearly 20 years. The study, involving researchers from Finland, Norway and the United Kingdom (U.K.), is thought to be the largest yet to highlight the cancer risk from using sleep aids. Past, smaller studies have suggested a link between the medications and cancer, but were too small to draw firm conclusions, DailyMail.com reported.

Researchers found that those regularly using sleeping pills at least twice a week were nearly two-and-a-half times more likely to develop cancer of the airways than non-users. The risk trebled in those who used the drugs for three years or more. A slight increase in all types of cancer was observed in people who used sleep aids regularly. But when scientists focused on respiratory cancers, they found an alarming rise in risk. Sleeping pills have been associated with a higher number of infections, which may allow cancer cells to flourish, according to DailyMail.com.

In 2008, a study found that 5.2 percent of Americans were taking benzodiazepine drugs, DailyMail.com reported. The meds have also been linked to Alzheimer’s disease and dangerous behaviors such as “sleep-eating” and risky sex, Men’s Health wrote. In 2013, scientists warned that that benzodiazepine sleeping aids, also known as “z-hypnotic drugs,” increased the risk of heart attacks by as much as 50 percent, according to DailyMail.com.

Cancer Research U.K. said it’s still too early to draw conclusions about sleeping pill use, but health information manager Sarah Williams told DailyMail.com: “The best advice to reduce the risk of cancer remains the same – not smoking, eating a balanced diet, keeping a healthy weight, cutting down on alcohol, being active and enjoying the sun safely.”

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