In this article:
- What is melatonin, and how does it work?
- How to choose the right dosage for you
- Best sources of melatonin
- Potential side effects of melatonin, and how to avoid them
- What is melatonin’s half-life?
- Sleep supplement alternatives to melatonin
- How melatonin fits in with your exercise, diet, and lifestyle routine
Melatonin is touted as an all-natural remedy for poor sleep quality, but that’s only part of the story. It helps many people, but not all; plus, you could be getting the wrong dosage and not even realize it. With a little background information, you’ll be able to make an educated decision on whether or not melatonin is right for you.
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Takeaways:
- If you take melatonin, it’s important to take only as much as you need; too much could disrupt your sleeping patterns.
- Some people experience side effects after taking melatonin, but the symptoms generally go away after stopping supplementation or lowering the dose.
- In order to maximize the benefits of melatonin, it’s best to consider how it can work within your lifestyle routine.
What is melatonin, and how does it work?
Melatonin is the hormone that’s responsible for making sure you go to sleep and stay asleep. Your pineal gland makes most of your body’s melatonin, starting in the evening and peaking at around 3 a.m. You read that right - you already have your own supply of melatonin! The question is, does your body make the right amounts at the right times? That’s what needs to happen in order for melatonin to do its job, but factors like stress, jetlag, or even too much evening screen time can disrupt melatonin production.
Melatonin’s main function may be to promote restful sleep, but researchers are still digging into the other implications of having optimal melatonin levels. More study is needed, but early results point to melatonin playing a part in maintaining a robust immune system.
There are definitely steps you can take to get your sleep cycle back on track, such as lowering stress, cutting back on caffeine, or even meditation. However, that would require a mini lifestyle overhaul in most cases, and that isn’t feasible for everybody - which is why melatonin supplements are more popular than ever.
How to choose the right dosage for you
Where melatonin is concerned, more is definitely not merrier. The idea of taking a melatonin supplement is to supply your system with whatever it isn’t able to produce on its own; if you take too much, you’ll end up feeling groggy all day long. Instead of feeling tired because you aren’t getting enough sleep, you’ll feel tired because your body is getting mixed signals from an overload of melatonin.
What most people end up doing involves a bit of trial and error, but if you stay within reasonable limits it shouldn’t take long to figure out how much you need. Remember, you’re supplementing your own natural production of the sleep hormone, not trying to knock yourself out with sleeping pills. Start off with a dose between 0.3 mg and 3 mg of melatonin, see how you react after taking it a few nights in a row, and adjust as needed.
Best sources of melatonin
Sketchy miracle weight-loss pills aren’t the only products in the supplement aisle you should be wary of - because they aren’t the only thing there that lacks FDA regulation. When you buy a melatonin supplement, what the label says isn’t always what you get.
Say you’re taking 2 mg of melatonin nightly, so you get a supplement that gives you the right dose in a single pill. The amount of active ingredient is supposed to be within 10% of the amount on the label, but that often isn’t the case. A 2017 study found that out of 31 melatonin supplements tested, 22 of them were outside the 10% margin - and some of them were way outside the margin. That hypothetical 2 mgs of melatonin you’re taking could actually be anywhere from 0.3 mg to 9.5 mg, depending on the brand.
If you’re looking at certain brands but aren’t sure if the labels are telling the truth, check the bottles for an NSF International or USP certification. These are both non-profit organizations that verify pharmaceutical and natural supplemental products; you can also check their websites to see which brands they’ve verified.
Potential side effects of melatonin, and how to avoid them
In a perfect world, it would only take a couple of small adjustments before you found the right dose of melatonin. Unfortunately, it doesn’t always work like that, and some people end up with some unpleasant side effects. The good news is, none of them are permanent; in fact, most of them will probably disappear within a day or two of you quitting the supplement.
- Mood changes (in a very few cases these can manifest as paranoia or hallucinations)
- Feelings of malaise or depression
- Stomach upset, cramping, or vomiting
- Dizziness
- Lower core body temperature
- Inability to wake up
- Disruption of other hormones, particularly the ones involved in lactation or pregnancy
If you start experiencing any of these symptoms after taking melatonin, you could either try a lower dose, or stop taking it altogether.
What is melatonin’s half-life?
The half-life of melatonin (a.k.a. the time it takes the body to metabolize half of the substance) is between 40 and 60 minutes, depending on the formulation. Why does this matter, though? Well, if you wake up at 4 a.m. and simply can’t go back to sleep, don’t even think about touching that bottle of melatonin supplements. if you take melatonin at 4 a.m. with plans to wake up three hours later…let’s just say you’re going to need shocking amounts of coffee in the morning.
This is because it takes four or five half-lives for any given drug to clear your system. If you take melatonin at 4 a.m., give it half an hour to kick in, and then wake up at 7 a.m., you’ll still have elevated levels of the sleep hormone floating around your body as you’re trying to navigate your morning routine.
Sleep supplement alternatives to melatonin
If melatonin doesn’t sound like your jam, you still have plenty of options when it comes to natural sleep supplements.
- Valerian - nicknamed “nature’s Valium”, this herb has been used for centuries to promote restful sleep. It can be taken in capsule form, or brewed as a tea.
- Lemon Balm - if stress is what’s preventing you from getting a good night’s rest, maybe lemon balm could help you unwind.
- Ashwagandha - this herb has been used in Ayurvedic medicine for hundreds of years; there are plenty of benefits associated with this plant, but one of its most popular is the potential for sound sleep.
- CBD - anxiety keeps a lot of people from catching enough z’s, but CBD has been shown to alleviate this stress symptom. It can also help with joint or muscle pain, another cause of restless nights.
How melatonin fits in with your exercise, diet, and lifestyle routine
You have your own daily schedule - and so does melatonin. You need it to kick in when it’s time to sleep, and wear off in time for you to get out of bed feeling rested and ready. But how can you make this happen? Here are a few easy habits that can help you and your melatonin cycle stay in sync.
- Stick with no more than two cups of coffee per day, preferably in the morning.
- Implement a moderate exercise routine, and avoid intense exercise at night.
- Avoid evening screentime (unless you just can’t keep yourself away from TikTok; in that case, try blue-light blockers).
- Reduce junk food in favor of whole foods
- See what you can do to lower your stress levels, whether that means saying “no” more often, or simply deciding that it’s fine if you aren’t totally put-together and punctual every minute of the day.
Reducing stress and caffeine consumption might seem like obvious choices, but what about the food you eat? You don’t just want to make sure you’re getting enough melatonin; you also need to eliminate it efficiently. There’s nothing like processed food to slow your metabolism down, so if you can rev it up with healthier eating habits, it’s a win-win!
You could also end up producing more melatonin naturally as you improve your sleep hygiene, which means you’re moving in the right direction. But how will you be able to tell for sure? You could get your sleep and stress hormone levels tested. Hopefully you’d already be able to see improvements in your sleeping patterns after taking melatonin; with testing, you’d know exactly which biomarkers were making the difference. The more you know about your own physiology, the better you’ll be able to steer it in the right direction!
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