Melatonin: Your Sleeping Potion?

What is Melatonin?

Hello and welcome to today’s article. If you are half as obsessed with health articles as I am then you have definitely come to the right place. Today we will be looking at melatonin and it’s various functions in the body, but mostly in the brain. I’ll share my personal story, and how melatonin helped me to find stability in mental health journey, but first things first, what exactly is melatonin? Why is it produced in the body? For what purpose? Let’s explore a little further by looking at the brain, and most specifically, the human brain.

Related image
The human brain

The brain is one of the most delicate organs in the body, and because of that, it is imperative that we know exactly what goes on up there (or at least some of it). Without further ado, what is Melatonin? What is it’s relationship to the brain?

Melatonin is a chemical hormone that is produced by both humans and animals in the pineal gland primarily in the brain. Melatonin, popularly known for its ability to induce sleep in humans as well as animals. According to Mayo Clinic, melatonin is a primary chemical that plays a huge role in sleep and its production increases as the day.

Full Moon
Melatonin increases in the body as the day progresses.

According to , the production and release of melatonin in the brain is directly connected to time of day, increasing when it is dark and also decreasing when it’s light. Melatonin production is a hormone that declines with age in both humans and animals. Apart from its natural production in humans and animals, melatonin is also produced in the form of supplements, and melatonin produced artificially is usually made in a scientific lab. You can check out our web page for supplements that can be taken to produce sleep.

Melatonin and the Brain

Two months ago, I was diagnosed with bipolar disorder, which is a mental condition that is characterized by manic episodes, low mood, and low energy spells and a chemical balance in the brain. For many years, my disorder went had in hand with low mood swings and low energy spells. For many people who struggle with this mental condition, their sleep patterns are affected. Thankfully, there are ways to address bipolar disorder and lessen its blow. Naturally, the human body has a biological clock that acts in sync with the environment that it is in. This has a lot to do with a circadian rhythm.

Gray Double-bell Clock
Biological clock example

What is a circadian rhythm? It is a biological process associated with living things, human beings included and it revolves around a 24-hour cycle. The circadian rhythm affects a lot in the body, but most importantly, it influences the sleep-wake cycle of human beings, and this is where melatonin and bipolar disorder are linked. When a person has a bipolar disorder, there is a dysfunction in the sleeping rhythm of the human being, and melatonin helps to balance that equation and create an equilibrium of stable sleep and wake cycles.

Melatonin and Bipolar Disorder

In the last paragraph, we briefly brushed on the topic of circadian rhythms and it’s relationship with mental health and how melatonin comes into the picture, but it is time for us to have an in-depth conversation about bipolar disorder, and how it affects the body in the general sense. The first time I paid attention to Bipolar disorder was when rapper Kanye West shared that he had been diagnosed with a mental condition after living with the condition for over forty years. Ironically, I was diagnosed with the same condition two weeks later, and it helped me to look closely at my behaviors, sleep-wake patterns, and my energy levels. Knowing what was wrong empowered me and gave me a deeper insight into how to handle the issue as well as what medication I needed to take.

Pharmaceutical Grade Melatonin (5mg) by Just Potent | Better Sleep | Brain Health
Pharmaceutical Grade Melatonin (5mg) by Just Potent | Better Sleep | Brain Health

One of the many symptoms that I went through were bouts of irritation and restlessness followed by long hours of tossing and turning in my bed helplessly waiting for sleep to come. After my diagnosis, my Doctor prescribed my medication, and one of the supplements that I happened to take was rich in melatonin and this significantly stabilized my sleep-wake pattern. Of course, taking the medication in the evening influenced a positive result as well. If you or a loved one suffer from any form of health challenge that induces sleeplessness, then melatonin is a supplement that you can take to help you. Be sure you talk to your physician about what supplements will

work best for you. For a list of melatonin supplements, head to our website and get your dosage today.

Advancements in Melatonin Research

Thank you for making it down to this section of the article. Stay with me as we look at scientific and medical advances in the medical research of melatonin. According to researchgate.com,

Increasing clinical pieces of evidence suggest that melatonin receptor agonists can represent a fresh therapeutic approach for the treatment of sleep disturbances and depression. A variety of studies also revealed a role of melatonin and its receptors in different patho-physiological conditions. Due to the multiple positive effects of this hormone, the design of new agents able to interact selectively with melatonin receptors has become an area of great interest during the last decade.  A comprehensive review of structures recently claimed as melatonin receptor agonists and a broad overview of structure-activity relationships for these ligands suggests that. After 5 decades of research, the field of melatonin receptor agonists comprises of a variety of selected chemical entities, belonging to structurally different classes. Patents filed since 1999 claim new melatonin receptor agonists, characterized either by improved pharmacokinetic or pharmacodynamic properties, compared to those of melatonin receptor agonists are already approved for clinical uses. The results of preclinical studies on animal models show that melatonin receptor agonists can be considered promising agents for the treatment of CNS (central nervous system)-related pathologies.

 

Conclusion

Although that last paragraph/blockquote was unarguably a lot to take in, it did two things: first, it established what we talked about in previous paragraphs about how awesome melatonin is, and how effective is in the treatment of mental health lapses, namely bipolar disorder or manic depression. I am going to conclude this article by making a list of the different types of food, fruits, and vegetables that have a certain amount of melatonin in them.

Melatonin – All You Need to Know

Melatonin is a natural hormone produced in the brain. This hormone is responsible for our sleep and wake cycles. An imbalance of this hormone may pose serious health risks and may be a major contributing factor to a lot of diseases.

Just Potent Melatonin 10mg
Just Potent Melatonin 10mg

Research after research have shown melatonin to be highly effective for some people and mildly effective or ineffective for others. What this means is that melatonin supplement as a sleep aid will not work for everyone.

The melatonin hormone, also know as N-acetyl-5-methoxy tryptamine, is very important for proper functioning of the human body and prevention and treatment of some diseases.  The N-acetyl-5-methoxy tryptamine is secreted in the brain based on time of the day. Although melatonin hormone is ever present in the brain, its release and amount is mostly dictated by the time of the day. During day time, the amount of melatonin in the brain is at its lowest. As time and day progresses towards the evening, the brain starts to secrete this hormone.

It is true that majority of us know melatonin as an important sleep aid. What some of us don’t know is that melatonin has been studied to help alleviate, prevent, or treat some serious diseases. In this post, we will walk you through some of the other benefits of melatonin.

Melatonin Supplement For Sleep

One of the important benefits of melatonin, as mentioned earlier, is that it helps control our sleep / wake cycle. In other words, melatonin is responsible for helping us fall asleep faster, and stay asleep longer. For melatonin to really help you do all this, you have to help it help you achieve your best sleep.

Melatonin Hormone Loves Darkness
Melatonin Hormone Loves Darkness

So how do you help melatonin help you? We mentioned that melatonin release in the brain increases as we approach evenings. What this means in is that this hormone is dark-friendly. For melatonin supplement to help you sleep better, you need to feed it darkness. You need to prevent different sources of light (smartphones, TVs, and lights from other sources). This is the most important factor that can limit the effectiveness of any melatonin supplement. Apart from light as a melatonin limiting factor, other factors that can prevent melatonin supplement from helping you fall asleep include:

  • Underlying health conditions
  • Your environment
  • Mental state
  • Caffeine

These list of factors are not exhaustive in any sense, however, these are very common factors that hinder sleep. Underlying health conditions can definitely interfere with the production of the melatonin hormone and also interfere with sleep even in the presence of high melatonin levels in the brain. Experiencing pain, arthritis for example, in one part of different parts of your body can make it difficult to fall and stay asleep.

Your environment is another important factor that will interfere with your sleep. If you’re feeling too hot or too cold, you may find that you’re not able to fall and/or stay asleep for a long time. It is very very important to create a conducive environment to sleep in. Another environmental factor will be noise levels. While some are totally fine with some level of noise, some are very sensitive to it. It is important that you sleep in an environment where there is little to no noise.

Mental state is another factor that may interfere with our sleep. When you’re stressed about an exam or are anxious about something, or are depressed, all of these will definitely affect how fast you fall asleep and the overall quality of your sleep.

Caffeine Sources
Caffeine Sources… Source: http://www.eufic.org/en/whats-in-food/article/caffeine-qas

Caffeine affects the quality of your sleep in many ways. Studies have shown caffeine to decrease sleep time by an average of 2 hours[1]. Caffeine has also been shown to be responsible for the number of times you wake throughout the night. Caffeine’s effect on sleep is not universal. Some people have caffeine and still get their quality sleep while some wouldn’t dare to consume caffeine 6-10 hours before bed time. Goes to show you how we are all different in our special ways; some are lucky and some just aren’t.

Melatonin Dosage

The right dosage of melatonin will vary from one individual to another. Some people who can’t sleep or have some form of sleeping disorder will need small dosage of melatonin, while some individuals will need a high dose. Currently, the popular dosage sizes of melatonin are 1mg, 2mg, 3mg, 5mg, and 10mg. Many of these melatonin dosage sizes are readily available online and in stores.

Melatonin in 10mg and 5mg Bottles
Melatonin in 10mg and 5mg Bottles

While on the topic of melatonin dosage, it is important to note that melatonin can be used by adults and children. Children who have issues sleeping will find that melatonin can help them fall asleep faster and stay asleep longer. It’s not advisable to have kids over-rely on melatonin. The main reason is that over-relying on melatonin while they are young might mean they may need melatonin for the rest of their lives. Additionally, there are no studies on long term effect of melatonin use.

So what is the right melatonin dosage? Again, this will vary from one individual to another. Some individuals who need very little help with sleep will find that 1/2 a milligram to 1mg is just enough, while some individuals will need 2mg or 10mg. Based on available studies, it does not appear that one can overdose on melatonin. The good news is that taking too much melatonin isn’t harmful to an adult, it’s just a matter of body tolerance.

If you haven’t used melatonin pills before, you absolutely do not know how well it will work for you or how your body will react to it. We suggest you start out at 1/2 a milligram for children and 1mg for adults. If that doesn’t work, you may increase to 1mg for children and 3mg for adults. If these dosage amounts aren’t effective, you could safely increase dosage up to 3mg for children and 5mg for adults. If you plan to give your child more than 3mg, please consult with your healthcare provider first. As for adults, you can take anywhere from 1mg to 20mg without issues. Some people take more, but for the purpose of sleep, it is best to experiment incrementally as opposed to just starting out with a high dosage like 10mg.

Be aware, high melatonin dosage have been known to cause seizures in children. Be sure to consult with you pediatric provider before administering melatonin on a child.

Melatonin Overdose

One question we have been getting lately is whether you can overdose on melatonin. The answer is a yes with a caveat. With a caveat because there isn’t a dosage recommendation for melatonin. As we mentioned before, it’s best to experiment and gradually increase dosage if 1mg isn’t effective in making you fall asleep.

What happens when you take more melatonin than you body can handle? You may start to experience the side effects of melatonin. Some possible side effects of taking melatonin, either in lower or higher doses include: drowsiness, grogginess, irritability, nausea, headache, and a host of other symptoms.

Melatonin and Jet Lag

Travelers who travel frequently across time zones and continents can attest first-hand how helpful melatonin was in helping to deal with jet lag. When you jet lag, you experience some symptoms that take several days or weeks to overcome. Some jet lag symptoms are feelings of discomfort and irritability, erratic and poor sleep, indigestion, and fatigue during the day.[1]

A randomized study in 2002 tried to answer whether melatonin is a good supplement for prevention and treatment of jet lag. What this study found was that melatonin isn’t just a good supplement for prevention and treatment of jet lag, it found melatonin to be great supplement for jet lag prevention and treatment.

The study [2] found that 9 out of 10 trials showed melatonin, when taken close to bedtime (between 10pm and 12am) of trial participants, helped decrease jet lag. The positive effects of melatonin in alleviating the symptoms of jet lag was even better when trial participants flew across at least 5 time zones.

Other Uses and Benefits of Melatonin

Breast Cancer

BPA (Bisphenol A) is a very popular chemical in a lot of things we interact with daily. BPA is widely used to manufacture plastics, sealants, paper treatment (receipts/invoice), and many supplies we use. BPA is known to mimic estrogen and is responsible for hormone-related cancers. A new 2018 study found that taking melatonin could dramatically reduce the proliferation of breast cancer cells by killing BPA-elevated cells in the body. The conclusion of the the authors, in their own words:

… these results demonstrated that melatonin could abrogate BPA-induced proliferation of BC cells. Therapeutically, melatonin could be regarded as a potential medication for BPA-associated [breast cancer] BC. [3]

Fibromyalgia and Chronic Pain

Fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS) is a chronic musculoskeletal disorder characterized by generalized muscular pain accompanied by fatigue and tenderness at specific anatomic sites called tender points.[4]

A double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical study on 101 patients suffering from fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS) found that melatonin, administered alone or with 20mg of flueoxetine (Prozac), was effective in treating patients with fibromyalgia syndrome.[4]

Menopause

With menopause comes sleep problems. Some studies have shown melatonin to be effective in treating menopause related sleep problems. Additionally, melatonin helps perimenopausal woment prevent bone loss and improves the quality of life.[5]

Cardiopreotective and Neuroprotective Properties

Studies have shown melatonin to have antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. Some research suggest that melatonin may help lower blood pressure. Other research have shown melatonin to increase cell survival while at the same time decreasing oxidative stress.[6]

 

 

 

[1] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1402564/
[2] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12076414
[3] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/29330934
[4] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21158908
[5] https://www.umm.edu/health/medical/altmed/supplement/melatonin/
[6] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/29325994

Melatonin: Your Drug-Free, Non-Habit Forming Sleep Aid

Melatonin, contrary to public perception isn’t a drug, but a natural hormone produced in the human brain. This hormone also referred to as N-acetyl-5-methoxy tryptamine in scientific terms, helps regulate our sleep / wake cycle.

Although melatonin can also be found in plants and other animals, this article will focus on the human side of things. In this post, I will be talking about melatonin dosage, safety, side effects, who should use it as a sleep

aid, alternatives to melatonin, and my verdict on its efficacy.

Who Should Use Melatonin?

Melatonin is for anyone, I mean most people who find it difficult to fall and/or stay asleep. If you have difficulty falling sleep or just getting tired to make the final descent into “sleepdom”,  you need melatonin. If you’re traveling intercontinental and want to sync your wake/sleep cycle with that of your final destination, you may need melatonin. If you are like me and millions of others who have read scientific research backing melatonin as preventative medicine for some serious diseases (this topic will be for another post), you should use melatonin. If your brain isn’t producing enough melatonin, you doctor may recommend that you take melatonin. If you’re a pet owner, you will be surprised to learn melatonin is good for dogs, just like it is for humans. Your dog agitated? Barking your ears off on 4th of July? Melatonin will help!

Melatonin Dosage

For sleep, the dosage of melatonin will depend on many factors. Factors

Just Potent Melatonin 10mg
Just Potent Melatonin 10mg

such as: melatonin levels in your brain, past melatonin use, your body’s tolerance, and a host of others. If you have low levels of N-acetyl-5-methoxy tryptamine, you definitely need to supplement with melatonin. If you have used melatonin in the past and didn’t experience the desired effect; the effect of getting tired and just falling into “sleepdom”, then you need to re-evaluate your dosage amount. If you’re special in your own way, regular dosage amount may not be enough.

If you are new to melatonin or you haven’t used it before, it is best to start at 1mg to 3mg dosage. This dosage amount means you need just little assistance falling and staying asleep. If you’re in this category, don’t run off to go order yourself a 1mg pill or say, 3mg pills; order higher milligram pills instead. The reason is this: if you ordered a 1mg pill and it didn’t work for you, then you may be out on few dollars and be stuck with a bad experience with your first use of melatonin as a sleep aid. BUT, if you ordered 3mg or 5mg, you can cut a tablet in half to start with. If that half tablet dosage amount doesn’t work for you, then you can safely increase your dosage.

If you have used melatonin in the past and the experience was bad, you may have made the mistake mentioned above, ordering just 1mg pills. Or, it could be that you ordered a brand that has more fillers and additives than the active ingredient.

Another point I would like to make regarding past experiences – if it didn’t work for you in the past, it may just mean that you didn’t take the right dosage amount. If 1mg melatonin worked for Mr. Kramer, it doesn’t mean the same milligram amount will work for you. We are all different in our body composition and special in our own ways. What has worked for Marie may certainly not work for Mary.

So what dosage amount of melatonin should you take? There is no straight answer to that question. You’d have to test the amount (mg) that works for you. You start off from between 1-3mg and work your way up until 10mg if you have to. It is not uncommon for people to use in excess of 20mg per dose. Here a comment one of our customers left us recently:

My daily dose of Melatonin is 30mg. Just Potent is the largest sold at 10mg and 3 work as well as my prior compounded melatonin.

Here is another customer:

works great!! I take 3 tablets [30mg] before bed and I am asleep within the hour 🙂

Is Melatonin Safe? What Are The Benefits?

If you’re healthy and don’t have any serious illness preventing use, melatonin is pretty safe. This is because it naturally resides in our body. So yes, taking real melatonin, free of undeclared additional ingredients or fillers is pretty safe for most people. Be sure to consult with your doctor before use or if in doubt.

One major benefit for why you want to take melatonin is sleep. If you have difficulty falling sleep, you may sleep better from melatonin supplementation.

Since this aritcle is about sleep, we will limit the benefits to confines of sleep and sleep problems. Be sure to stay tuned for upcoming posts on other melatonin benefits.

The Side Effects of Melatonin

The side effects mostly associated with melatonin use is grogginess. If you have took melatonin the night prior and you wake up groggy instead of refreshed, you may need to lower your dose. While some people will get away with taking 30mg per night, some can’t get away with taking 5mg per night. When you take melatonin for sleep, make sure you have enough hours to sleep. You really don’t want to take melatonin knowing you have just 2-3 hours of time to sleep.

Melatonin Alternatives

There are various alternatives to melatonin, the majority being herbs and teas. Chamomile, passionflower, valerian, lavender and many other herbs have been shown to help some people sleep better. Although the studies on these herbs are scarce, melatonin still remains one of the go-to sleep medicine for majority of people.

The Verdic

Should you or should you not? I say this: what have you got to lose? Give melatonin a try and see whether it helps improve your sleep, AND life. As we all know, lack of sleep is very detrimental to our overall health. If you get enough sleep, you are generally healthier and you think clearer than someone who doesn’t. Sleep is a good thing and if you’re not getting enough sleep because you can’t fall or stay asleep, it is incumbent on you to find a solution to help you manage this problem. Melatonin supplements like the Just Potent Melatonin is a definite good choice and I encourage you to try it.