Associations between sleep medication use and alcohol consumption over 36 years in Finnish twins

Background Sleep medication use is an indicator of underlying sleep problems that might be induced by various factors such as alcohol use. However, the longitudinal relationship between drinking and sleep problems remains poorly understood. We investigated associations between sleep medication and alcohol use throughout adulthood, and examined the role of familial and potential confounding factors contributing to these associations. Methods We used information of zygosity and self-report questionnaire data over a follow-up period of 36 years from the Older Finnish Twin Cohort (N=13,851). Results Logistic regression analyses suggested consistent associations between sleep medication use and heavy/binge drinking at all four time points (OR range =1.36-3.18, P