Live data from Hacker News

Melatonin: Much More Than You Wanted to Know (2018)

slatestarcodex.com

21–30 of 156 posts

Re: Melatonin: Much More Than You Wanted to Know (2018)

#21

> Most existing melatonin tablets are around ten to thirty times the correct dose I wonder how common this is in pharmacology.

Given that I can go to Walgreens and get homeopathic stuff that's a few orders of magnitude further in the opposite direction...

Not uncommon, I think. You can also grab a random multivitamin off the shelf and you regularly find stuff in there at 5-100x daily recommended doses (though those are generally things safe for significantly higher doses for extended periods, e.g. vitamin c)

Re: Melatonin: Much More Than You Wanted to Know (2018)

#22
I used to work 7pm - 7am night shift. 3 days on, 4 days off one week and 4 days on, 3 days off the next. With lots of melatonin, exercise and careful adherence to my bizarre schedule I was able to train my body into a diurnal inversion cyclical sleep schedule. As soon as my 3/4 day work week was over I would -- over the course of one day -- inverter myself back to being awake during the day. When my weekend was over I would invert back to sleeping during the day. I did this for years.

Work day 1: wake up 12pm, sleep 7am

Work day 2: same

Work day 3: same

Day off 1: wake up 12 pm, sleep at 10pm

Day off 2: wake up 8am, sleep 10pm

Day off 3: wake up 8 am, sleep 1am

Day off 4: wake up 12pm, sleep 3am

Repeat.

Melatonin was literally the only way I managed that.

Re: Melatonin: Much More Than You Wanted to Know (2018)

#24

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That happened to me too. Not pleasant. Melatonin should never be taken by those with existing or predisposition to mental health conditions.

"mental health conditions" is rather broad along with the intersection between insomnia and depression. you probably just suggested that nobody should take melatonin because you had anxiety.

NY state used to warn against it. It wasn't for nothing.

But yes, I definitely recommend people not to take hormones unless they know exactly what they are doing. Just because something is for sale over the counter, doesn't mean it's safe or good for you.

Re: Melatonin: Much More Than You Wanted to Know (2018)

#26
post #4

> the correct dose A single correct dose is a myth. The author even sort of notes that with the differences between teenagers, 25 year olds and the elderly. There's also a wide variety of sleep disorders which are touched on in the article. I've suffered with 2.5mg before for long enough to understand that it doesn't work for me, no matter how many studies you have with 95% CL that the dose is much lower. The 5mg tab…

Ok, in the context of commercial supplements being 10-30x the "correct dose" the significant point is that the commercial doses are stupidly high for anyone. People needing +/- 50% of the dose isn't the important part here.

No, some people need more than the commercial supplements provide. That's the point. The effective range varies by an order of magnitude. The author denies the actual variety of human needs.

Re: Melatonin: Much More Than You Wanted to Know (2018)

#27
post #4

> the correct dose A single correct dose is a myth. The author even sort of notes that with the differences between teenagers, 25 year olds and the elderly. There's also a wide variety of sleep disorders which are touched on in the article. I've suffered with 2.5mg before for long enough to understand that it doesn't work for me, no matter how many studies you have with 95% CL that the dose is much lower. The 5mg tab…

I'm not sure you can trust the numbers on unregulated supplements anyway.

Re: Melatonin: Much More Than You Wanted to Know (2018)

#29
post #4

> the correct dose A single correct dose is a myth. The author even sort of notes that with the differences between teenagers, 25 year olds and the elderly. There's also a wide variety of sleep disorders which are touched on in the article. I've suffered with 2.5mg before for long enough to understand that it doesn't work for me, no matter how many studies you have with 95% CL that the dose is much lower. The 5mg tab…

Ok, in the context of commercial supplements being 10-30x the "correct dose" the significant point is that the commercial doses are stupidly high for anyone. People needing +/- 50% of the dose isn't the important part here.

I tried taking 8x of his "correct dose" for months and it failed for me. I'm currently taking 16x his "correct dose".

Re: Melatonin: Much More Than You Wanted to Know (2018)

#30

> I think you could make an argument for anything up to 1 mg. Anything beyond that and you’re definitely too high So, should I take the whole 1 mg pill or divide it into smaller doses?

I found a liquid melatonin on Amazon that let's me dose 0.3mg. I take it 30-60m before and it definitely makes me tired. I still have to go with it though and put myself in bed to sleep; sometimes I end up powering through and end up more awake :d
Post reply on HN