The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on Wednesday warned that sleeping pills may sometimes cause sleep-driving, a hazardous condition similar to sleep-walking where sleep-drivers may actually drive their cars and cause severe auto accidents yet have no recollection of the events.
The condition is common in people who take sleeping pills and other sedative-hypnotic drugs indicated to induce or maintain sleep. The FDA has now asked the manufacturers of these drugs to include strong language in their product labeling to warn about sleep driving, as well as other potential risks.
The FDA has reportedly compiled more than a dozen reports of sleep-walking and more are expected to pour in now. The most widely covered case of sleep-driving occurred almost a year ago when Rep. Patrick Kennedy crashed his car after taking Ambien. The Congressman said he had no memory of the event but pleaded guilty to driving under the influence of prescription drugs. He was sentenced to court-ordered drug treatment and a year's probation
