The mortality rate for obese patients who regularly take sleeping pills is nine times higher than the death risk for similar patients who do not use the drugs, said a study presented at an American Heart Assn. scientific meeting in March.

Researchers examined the medical records of more than 34,000 patients treated in the Geisinger Health System in Pennsylvania. After controlling for sex, age, smoking status, alcohol use, marital status and ethnicity, the obese patients who took hypnotic medicines regularly — at least 132 pills annually — were 9.3 times likelier to die than patients with similar health who did not. Even obese patients who took 18 pills or fewer annually had a death rate eight times higher.

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