Melatonin (N-acetyl-5-methoxytryptamine)

Melatonin Information

N-acetyl-5-methoxytryptamine is the chemical name of the substance more commonly known as melatonin. To be more precise, melatonin is a hormone produced naturally by humans and other living beings.

A naturally occurring hormone is a substance produced in one part of a living entity and moved by the bloodstream to affect another part of the organism. A synthetic hormone is synthesized by chemists to mimic the effects of a naturally occurring hormone.

In human beings, melatonin is produced in a part of the brain known as the pineal gland. The pineal gland increases melatonin levels during periods when the environment is dark and reduces melatonin levels during light hours. An increase in melatonin levels promotes sleepiness.

Some people take melatonin supplements to help with various types of sleep disorders. Although it is not effective at treating all sleeping disturbances, melatonin aids some people in falling asleep when they would otherwise not be able to do so.

Melatonin supplements either come from the pineal glands of animals (natural melatonin) or they can be synthesized from chemical compounds (synthetic melatonin). In most cases ingesting a natural product is preferable to something synthetic.

However, with melatonin this is not the case. When obtained from natural sources it may harbor animal viruses that can affect humans. For this reason synthetic melatonin is recommended over natural source supplements.

A starting dose size as a sleep aid is somewhere near .5 (half a milligram) to 1 milligram taken 30-90 minutes before bedtime. If this is not effective, the amount of melatonin can be increased by .5 (half a milligram) to 1 milligram on subsequent attempts.

Melatonin liquid is preferred by people when they first try melatonin because it is easier to adjust the dose size. It is best not to split pills to reduce the dose size, there is no guarantee that if they are split that there will be equal amounts of melatonin in each portion.

A time release formulation of melatonin is recommended for those who want to sleep for a longer period. The delayed release maintains melatonin levels over an extended period. As a person ages, the amount of melatonin the body produces is reduced, so older people may need time released melatonin to get a full night's sleep.

Unless advised otherwise by a doctor, the maximum daily dose level of melatonin should not exceed 5-10 milligrams (mg). Lager dose sizes than 5-10 milligrams can cause a person to feel drowsy the day after it was consumed, and for men larger doses may reduce sex drive.

People have taken more than 100 mg with no toxic reactions. However, for most people doses under 5-10 mg work well as a sleep aid while doses over 10 mg tend to be less effective, or not to work at all. Larger doses won't necessarily make you more sleepy.

Melatonin is not addictive. There are no issues with tolerance (needing more to produce the same effect) for most people, but after long periods of daily ingestion a small minority may have to increase the dose size by a few milligrams.

The most common side effect is headache. Although it may cause headaches, some people with cluster headaches have found that melatonin reduces or eliminates their problem. People with a thyroid condition should be aware that thyroid levels may increase after taking melatonin.

Other side effects may include: dizziness, mood changes, nausea, stomach cramps, vivid dreams. People with cancer, depression, diabetes, high blood pressure, liver disease, or seizure disorders have a greater chance of experiencing side effects.

Melatonin should not be taken by children unless a doctor prescribes it. It can affect hormones which might later interfere with child development in adolescence. For the same reason it should not be consumed if you are breastfeeding or pregnant.

Because it causes drowsiness, it is best not to drive or do anything that requires you to be alert for 4-5 hours after ingesting melatonin. If you take time release or larger doses of melatonin, the drowsiness it produces will probably last longer than 4-5 hours.

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