From the 11/29 Show – Speculation on Tiger Woods and Ambien

The recent news reports have Tiger Woods remaining silent on his unfortunate attention getting accident last Friday morning. The radio show is an admirer of Tiger Woods and has enjoyed reading about his success in both life and golf. For the radio show, the incident, as reported in news accounts, http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/local/breakingnews/os-bk-tiger-woods-accident,0,1369881.story puts the drug Ambien into question. “There have been reports of “sleep-driving,” “sleep-eating,” or other unusual behaviors in people taking sedative-hypnotic medications”. http://sleep.emedtv.com/zolpidem/precautions-and-warnings-for-zolpidem-p2.html For an individual to do exactly as reported about Tiger Woods while on Ambien would be very possible.
It is the radio show’s hope that Tiger speak publicly on what led up to the incident. Tiger travels extensively and has a demanding schedule. For him to request a “sleeping aid” makes perfect sense. However, a person of his stature and admiration could help enlighten the world that many prescription drugs are dangerous even when taken as prescribed. It is this radio show’s belief that Tiger unwittingly fell into the trap millions of Americans are falling into with the marketing and hype brought on by the drug companies along with the silence of the dangers.
A recent press release by the FDA admits that “millions of people are harmed every year from inappropriate medication use.” http://www.pharmacistelink.com/index.php/Drugs-and-Treatment/FDA-s-Woodcock-Discusses-Pain-Management-and-Drug-Safety-in-Nov.-26-2009-Issue-of-The-New-England-Journal-of-Medicine.html
Millions of drug reactions occur every year and it remains business as usual for the drug industry. Tiger was lucky to only experience minor injuries and I worry that his silence will continue to subject many people to an outcome not as positive.