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Melatonin

gwern.net

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Re: Melatonin

#171

Post by gwern »

DanBC wrote: post #11

There are some problems with Melatonin (as supplied) - you don't really know how much (if any) you're getting. Investigators found that quality control was very poor and some brands contained very little melatonin. (I can't find it now, but it was something like Consumer Reports or similar?) It's a prescription only med in some places (UK) so you might not be able to get it. But it is "remarkably effective"[1] for je…

> (I can't find it now, but it was something like Consumer Reports or similar?)

Are you thinking of the Consumer Labs report? I quoted that in a footnote, but it does not show what you seem to think it showed:

> Can melatonin help you sleep? "Melatonin supplements may help some people get to sleep sooner, particularly those with chronic sleeping problems, but don't just buy any supplement - they vary [substantially] in strength, dosage, and cost," says ConsumerLab.com President, Tod Cooperman, M.D. ConsumerLab.com recently selected and tested nine different melatonin supplements. The testing showed that all contained their labeled amounts of melatonin, but the suggested daily dosage ranged from 1 mg to 50 mg [!]; and cost ranged from just 4 cents to $1.36 for an equivalent dose of melatonin. This means you may not be using the right dose for your needs and you could be paying as much as 33 times more than necessary. ConsumerLab.com also found that one supplement failed to properly disclose all of its ingredients.

That is, each contained all the melatonin it claimed to, but there were irresponsible doses being offered. Unfortunate, yes, but this is not a problem for anyone who did their homework and know what dose they want to try.

Re: Melatonin

#172

Post by magicalist »

da02 wrote: post #7

Why didn't you mention about the effects of a calcified pineal gland resulting from a Vitamin D and magnesium deficiency? Those are very common among the older folk, resulting in poor sleep quality, poor immune system, even increased chance of heart attacks.

Pineal gland calcification happens to almost everyone[1], whether you're vitamin D deficient or not. Not only is it completely normal, the health effects you mention have certainly not been shown to correlate with calcification.

Honestly, the only people that bring this up are people still steadfast against fluoridation of water and people looking for an overly simplistic cause for alzheimer's.

[1] http://radiology.rsna.org/content/142/3/659.full.pdf

Re: Melatonin

#173

Post by gwern »

drugcite-com wrote: post #30
minikites wrote: post #21

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Citation? The article says: > A 2010 trial tested a delayed-release melatonin over 6 months and found minimal adverse effects and no tolerance or "addiction"

As for Melatonin Adverse Events, it's my site that's linked to under 'Uses', ( http://www.drugcite.com/?q=melatonin ) It's important to sort the data by age and gender as the AE's can vary greatly. That data is FDA FAERS data that runs against many other datasets by the way.

As I've pointed out in the past to you, I'm not sure what use we're supposed to be making of your admittedly nice site, given that we don't know how many people are using melatonin, how reliable any of these cases are, or what.

Re: Melatonin

#176

Post by nwomack »

chmars wrote: post #87
karlkatzke wrote: post #37

Interesting. I work on call shifts. (Linux sysadmin, one week out of three is 24/7 on call -- which works much better than rotating one day out of three.) I've used Melatonin for years to 'regulate' my sleep cycle so that I can stop my tirelessly creative brain from thinking about that article I read a few hours ago on Hacker News. My other 'hacks' to keep my sleep cycle regulated are f.lux where possible, using only…

Melatonin does NOT work as a remedy for jet lag. I don't find open access links to the relevant studies right now but http://www.nojetlag.com/melatonin.html might give you a first idea.

Wow, you linked a homeopathic reference. This doesn't really deserve a response but I'll give it anyways.

It's anecdotal, but for the first 3 days after a major timezone travel difference (6+ hours), I take 2 pills (I think 6mg?) for the first 3 days after I travel about an hour before sleeping, then drink a couple cups of coffee in the morning.

I guess it depends on how you define "remedy" but this helps me sleep all the way through the night, and the caffeine helps keep me awake during the day.

This combination takes my jetlag from debilitating to annoying.

On the 4th day I have 0 jetlag related issues.

Re: Melatonin

#177

Post by ioddly »

ChristianMarks wrote: post #114

Gwern comes close to suggesting filtering blue light, but I will repeat a previous post. I've tried melatonin, but it is no substitute for for filtering blue light in my experience, and it tends to induce horrific, apocalyptic nightmares (granted, a night dreaming of EAS Emergency Action Notifications is better than no sleep at all). I used to be an owl for years--decades. A regular 9-5 schedule seemed out of reach.…

I've reached the same conclusion myself. I always find the lists of "sleep hygiene" suggestions to be incredibly misguided. Proper sleep hygiene is important, but I've come to believe that blue light is the most important "zeitgeber" (an environmental cue that influences the circadian rhythm) and it seems to be very rarely mentioned.

Re: Melatonin

#178

Post by nwomack »

pcl wrote: post #111
chmars wrote: post #87

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Melatonin does NOT work as a remedy for jet lag. I don't find open access links to the relevant studies right now but http://www.nojetlag.com/melatonin.html might give you a first idea.

Anecdotally, melatonin works wonders for me when traveling. I take 1mg of melatonin between 7 and 9pm in the target time zone's frame, usually starting the day I travel or sometimes the day before. This translates to taking a pill at noon or so in SF before flying to Europe. I follow that up with a pill on the first few evenings of a trip. I've been doing this for a few years now, and the only remnant of jetlag on su…

n=2, see my response to chmars

Re: Melatonin

#179

Post by nulagrithom »

Kronopath wrote: post #158
nulagrithom wrote: post #33

Melatonin does work wonders, but you never know how your own body might react to it. I have many issues with my sleep cycle and quality of sleep. Melatonin is one of the few things that alleviates my problems. However, for me, it's only good for one night. I can take melatonin for one night out of a month, and get a blissful, restful night of sleep. If I take it two nights in a row, evil side-effects start creeping u…

I'm curious as to what dosage you're taking. Several sources I've seen suggest the dosage they recommend on the package is too high for many of the typical brands out there. Do you experience these symptoms when taking low-dose melatonin (<= 0.5 mg)?

I've tried both high and low dose, and many different brands. Effects are the same either way. I usually go with the high dose since I'll only be taking it for one night anyway.

Re: Melatonin

#180

Post by cpeterso »

mrcharles wrote: post #54

I've been using melatonin on and off when I hit a patch of insomnia. It's pretty good; it just makes me super sleepy. Even with a low dose I end up groggy in the morning, however. But being able to actually fall asleep when I would otherwise lay awake for hours is worth the price of admission. I don't use it regularly but sometimes I just know when I'm going to have trouble falling asleep, and will take one about a h…

You should try a lower dose. Most melatonin packaging suggests 3-5 mg (like shampoo instructions that tell you to "rinse and repeat"), but other sources recommend just 0.3 mg for regular use.
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