Melatonin for sleep: Is it really effective? Are there alternatives for chronic insomnia?

Many people think of melatonin as a natural nod-off aid, kind of like chamomile tea in pill form. Even the name of the popular dietary supplement sounds sleepy – that long “o” sound almost makes you yawn mid-word. But melatonin is also a hormone that our brains naturally produce, and hormones, even in minuscule amounts, can have potent effects throughout the body.

“Melatonin is sometimes called the ‘hormone of darkness’ or ‘vampire hormone,’” because it comes out at night, said Matthew Walker, a professor of neuroscience and psychology at the University of California, Berkeley, and the author of the book Why We Sleep. As levels of melatonin rise, levels of cortisol, the stress hormone, fall. Respiration slows. Soon, our eyelids begin to droop.

Melatonin may make you feel a little drowsier when you take it, but it has a bigger impact on regulating the timing of your overall sleep-wake cycle and helping to set the circadian clock, the roughly 24-hour internal timekeeper that tells your body what time of day it is and syncs it with the outside world.“The impact it has on our sleep depends on the time of day that you take it,” said Dr Martin, who is also a spokeswoman for the American Academy of Sleep Medicine.

Many experts recommend starting with the smallest available dosage – 0.5 milligrams to 1 milligram, 30 minutes to an hour before bedtime – and seeing how you do from there. If that has no effect, the dose can be gradually increased. “Compared to most other sleeping pills, the side-effect profile is much better,” and it’s not going to be addictive, said Dr Bhanu Prakash Kolla, an associate professor of psychiatry and a consultant at the Center for Sleep Medicine at the Mayo Clinic. But because melatonin can cause drowsiness, the Mayo Clinic warns that you shouldn’t drive or operate machinery within five hours of taking it.

“They’re trying to tell you when to take the melatonin so your body knows: ‘Oh, it’s dusk where I’m going,’” Dr Rosen said, explaining how you can use the supplement before your trip to readjust your body clock.Like other dietary supplements, melatonin is not regulated by the Food and Drug Administration, which means there may be wide variation among products.

Singapore Latest News, Singapore Headlines

Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.

When am I contagious if infected with omicron?It’s not yet clear, but some early data suggests people might become contagious sooner than with earlier variants — possibly within a day after infection. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says people with the coronavirus are most infectious in the few days before and after symptoms develop. Based on previous data, that means people with omicron could start becoming contagious as soon as a day after infection.
Source: YahooSG - 🏆 3. / 71 Read more »

Inhaled Covid-19 booster 'more effective than third dose of Sinovac'CanSino's inhaled Covid-19 vaccine booster induces a higher level of immune response for those vaccinated with two Sinovac shots than a third dose of the Sinovac vaccine, a team of Chinese researchers has found. Study participants who received the CanSino booster showed 'much stronger neutralising antibody responses' - at nearly seven to 11 times higher than that of a three-dose...
Source: asiaonecom - 🏆 10. / 59 Read more »

'Ownself check ownself' is a virtue: Ong Ye Kung on ensuring an effective stateSINGAPORE - A two-party political system, such as those in the United States and Britain, is not likely to develop in a small country like Singapore, said Health Minister Ong Ye Kung at a forum on Thursday (Jan 13). But the existence of a non-politicised civil service and institutions such as the Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau and Auditor-General's Office, as...
Source: asiaonecom - 🏆 10. / 59 Read more »

Doting Uncle Elvin Ng Just Created A Lovely Children’s Room For His Nephew & 2 NiecesHe said that the kids, who used to sleep in his brother’s room, need their own space now that they’re all in school.
Source: TODAYonline - 🏆 1. / 99 Read more »

Nightmare On Elm Street ‘haunted house’ sold for nearly US$3 millionIt’s the house where Freddy Krueger tried to kill a young Nancy Thompson in her dreams.
Source: ChannelNewsAsia - 🏆 6. / 66 Read more »

Jason Momoa Announces Split From Wife Lisa Bonet On The Same Day Aquaman 2 Wraps ProductionIt's a bittersweet day for Jason Momoa.
Source: TODAYonline - 🏆 1. / 99 Read more »