For anyone taking Melatonin as a sleeping aid: The dosages it is being sold at are way too high. Recent studies point to 0.3 mg being the right amount for adults [1]. That dosage (taken over a period of several months every day at the same time) helped me get through a period of insomnia last summer, when basically all the other medications failed or had too strong side effects. [1] http://news.mit.edu/2001/melatonin…
From my recollection the smaller doses as you suggest were always known to be better but they were patented in the US by the institution that found them so only larger 3mg style doses can legally be sold cheaply, hence why most of what you can easily buy is 3mg+.
For anyone taking Melatonin as a sleeping aid: The dosages it is being sold at are way too high. Recent studies point to 0.3 mg being the right amount for adults [1]. That dosage (taken over a period of several months every day at the same time) helped me get through a period of insomnia last summer, when basically all the other medications failed or had too strong side effects. [1] http://news.mit.edu/2001/melatonin…
“Many health food stores are now selling melatonin, to induce sleep and “prevent cancer.” They have taken some information out of context, and don’t realize how dangerous melatonin is. It makes the brain sluggish, causes the sex organs to shrink, and damages immunity by shrinking the thymus gland. It is the hormone of darkness and winter, and is produced in the pineal gland by any stress which increases adrenalin. Ad…
For anyone taking Melatonin as a sleeping aid: The dosages it is being sold at are way too high. Recent studies point to 0.3 mg being the right amount for adults [1]. That dosage (taken over a period of several months every day at the same time) helped me get through a period of insomnia last summer, when basically all the other medications failed or had too strong side effects. [1] http://news.mit.edu/2001/melatonin…
I found this out by chance, because my mom had 0.1mg pills and I laughingly took a few thinking they were a placebo amount.
I have chronic insomnia, I had it all my life. I used to use melatonin but yes over time it lost its effect and melatonin is not one of those drugs you can just take more to sleep. It has a very precise dosage and if you take more it doesn't make you more sleepy. If you have chronic insomnia, you need to solve the root cause. In my case it is anxiety, and currently I'm trying to solve my anxiety and my sleep quality…
I don't have specific knowledge to counter this, but am surprised. It implies that humans would need more melatonin over the course of their lives, yet they produce less and less as they age...
Well, old people do tend to start sleeping poorly...
(citation needed, just got up, not looking for one.)
For anyone taking Melatonin as a sleeping aid: The dosages it is being sold at are way too high. Recent studies point to 0.3 mg being the right amount for adults [1]. That dosage (taken over a period of several months every day at the same time) helped me get through a period of insomnia last summer, when basically all the other medications failed or had too strong side effects. [1] http://news.mit.edu/2001/melatonin…
They do sell melatonin in correct dosages too, Sundown Naturals 300mcg is the one I use.
I even got a good effect from buying a bottle of these and splitting them in half.
Well that's concerning. I brought up long-term use to my GP, and didn't seem too concerned, but asked me to switch to melatonin, which I tried for a while. These studies are extremely difficult to make an informed decision on, thanks to nearly everything being "linked" to some disease. See: Red meat [1] I need to wean off it though. Thankfully dementia doesn't run in my family. https://www.iarc.fr/wp-content/uploads/…
Have you tried trazadone or mirtapine? I've had good results with trazadone, bu would wake up after 5-6 hours with adolescent-like erections and read that it can actually cause priapism; mirtazapine works wonderfully(also a very strong antihistamine at lower dosages) but it leaves me groggy for 24 hours.
On the subject of mirtazapine, I was like a zombie for the first week @15mg and ready to ditch it but the doc persuaded me to stick it out and sure enough the chronic drowsiness went away by the following week, leaving only the potent sleep induction that encouraged an increase to 30mg.
But this thread terrifies me now, finding it's also a dementia-inducer. Is there any literature I can review to either allay or justify the fear? Additional horrifying fact from same physician: Chronic benzo use also linked to dementia?
“Many health food stores are now selling melatonin, to induce sleep and “prevent cancer.” They have taken some information out of context, and don’t realize how dangerous melatonin is. It makes the brain sluggish, causes the sex organs to shrink, and damages immunity by shrinking the thymus gland. It is the hormone of darkness and winter, and is produced in the pineal gland by any stress which increases adrenalin. Ad…
"In general, the direct actions of melatonin on the gonads and adnexa of mammals indicate it is an important agent for maintaining optimal reproductive physiology" - https://www.mdpi.com/1422-0067/14/4/7231 When I look at other papers in this space I do find some adverse responses in hamster nuts when given melatonin injections (but not when it is administered using an implant). At this point I did not want to resear…
Are you saying this as a medical research professional or just spitballing? Because the article send to be straightforwardly claiming that melatonin is reducing oxidative damage, not just disabling the visible effects. One of the referenced sources is entitled, "Melatonin as a major skin protectant: from free radical scavenging to DNA damage repair," which seems to be saying that the "more research needed" has alread…
Free radical damage is not the main mechanism of UV-induced DNA damage. The main mechanism is direct dimerization as the photo-excited electron relaxes. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Direct_DNA_damage
It's hard to see how anything could prevent that other than sunscreen.
My grandfather lived to 94. Towards the end, the doctors had him on all sorts of schtuff. When he started his final decline in the last months, a hospice worker started coming a couple of times a week to check on him. Grandpa no longer wanted to hang around, ready to "see grandma again", he didn't want to take his medications. We finally relented when the hospice lady said that it was OK, so grandpa was allowed to stop taking his medications. Then something odd happened. Grandpa got better. Which really him. The hospice lady said that it was normal, and she'd seen that happen many times. Grandpa's recovery was shortlived though, mainly because he was hellbent on checking out, and he finally passed, in not too horrible a manner. He fell asleep, then fell into a deep unconscious state, then everything just shut down. In retrospect, I attribute his longevity, aside from genetic potential, to moderation, as well as getting moderate daily sunshine, fresh air, home cooking, walking, and having a reason to get out of bed every morning to attack the day. He had minimal immunizations, I'm sure the ones he got where of the highest quality (who the hell knows the quality control of modern mass produced overseas immunizations), he also took no supplements, and his exposure to the changes in mass produced food in recent decades, would have been minimal as most of his life had already passed. I'm in my late 40s, and virtually all of my friends have similar stories to tell. Our grandparents lived a long time. Our parents less so. And we're sure that our own lifespans will be even less. Pure lifespan aside, looking at the quality of life, it's even more dramatic. Grandpa and his friends did more at 60, then I did at 40. Parents did more at 50 then friends and I did at 40. Now it's common knowledge that 20 and 30 year olds are increasingly shocking doctors in trend-like fashion, with general poor health, and issues.