wnyc.org / 93.9fm / am 820

Comments

• [1] Glenn from Manhattan January 28, 2008 - 02:58AM

  You should ask the Dr. from NYU to disclose any potential conflicts of interest he has with drug companies, especially those who make sleeping pills. Even if he says he doesn't have any conflicts, does he go to 'conferences' at nice locations, and 'professional education seminars' also in chic locations where drug companies pay for nice dinners and theater shows, etc? So, if yes, how objective can he be?

  This 'contention' above is not without corroboration with recent stories in the general interest news about how drug companies bury clinical trials that do not show what they want to be shown.

  Sleep eating, walking, driving are all things that can happen with overuse of sleeping pills. Some of these can be quickly or long term deadly. Of course, mixing sleeping pills with booze or other drugs is how many people die also.

  
  
• [2] chestine from NY January 28, 2008 - 10:32AM

  Ask the psychiatrist (if he doesn't have those big pharma ties) what he thinks of formulae like Dr Hofman's MD select sleep formula from Vitamin Shoppe - it has small amounts of 5htp, hops, melatonin and a few otehr herbs and works well. I am not fond of messing with drugs. Also there are nutritional aspects to sleeplessness and as a member of a family full of MDs I know this is not something MDs tend to be up on.

  
  
• [3] chestine from NY January 28, 2008 - 10:49AM

  Jack Nicholson reportedly warned Heath not to take Ambien -

  
  
• [4] Maya from Brooklyn January 28, 2008 - 10:51AM

  All this picking through Heath Ledger's medicine cabinet seems rather undignified and....slimy.

  
  
• [5] Veronica from Manhattan January 28, 2008 - 10:53AM

  This guy is so propped by Big Pharma.

  
  
• [6] Jules from NY January 28, 2008 - 10:54AM

  "Jack Nicholson reportedly warned Heath not to take Ambien

  Is this, in fact, what he warned him about???

  
  
• [7] yj January 28, 2008 - 10:55AM

  Do alcohols differ in their soporific effects?

  I've found plumb wine to induces a deeper sleep than regular red or white wine.

  
  
• [8] World's Toughest Milkman from the_C_train January 28, 2008 - 10:58AM

  How about awaiting the coroner's report before even referencing this incident, seems like tabloid time.

  I guess to sound the cliche, common sense isn't too common.

  
  
• [9] Jonathan Flothow from Wyckoff Heights January 28, 2008 - 11:02AM

  Colin Powell in a Nov. 5, 2003 interview:

  "Everybody here uses Ambien."

  "Here" being the Bush White House.

  
  
• [10] richard sloat from east village January 28, 2008 - 10:45PM

  I was disappointed with this interview for as others have stated there was the the standard got a problem take a drug attitude, which is what we get from too many doctors. Some few people might have no alternative but to take a drug but most people if they got up read a book, or meditated, for 1/4 to 1/2 an hour could get back to sleep without drugs and get a better deeper sleep experience.