Natural Sleep Remedies - Melatonin Supplement
The most popular natural sleep remedy is Melatonin Supplement. Melatonin is a natural hormone produced by the body in the pineal gland located at the base of the brain. It participates in controlling of circadian rhythm. Its levels change throughout the day, with the lowest point in the middle of the day, and increasing gradually in the evening, reaching peak level around midnight.
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Does Melatonin work?
There are reports of studies showing
that Melatonin
may be helpful in falling and staying asleep
especially when the problem is caused by circadian rhythm disruption.
For these reasons it may be effective in a jet lag, when people
fly across several
time zones. The supplement may also help
with
adaptation to night shift
work,
and in delayed sleep-phase syndromes.
Melatonin may benefit some insomnia patients, but it should not be used as the first line treatment. Insomnia is often a manifestation of other underlying disorder. Therefore, it is critical to identify the cause of insomnia before deciding on the treatment.
Melatonin Dosage
Melatonin is available as a dietary supplement
in
health food, grocery and drug stores usually in tablet form either by
itself or in combination with other medications. The
recommended
doses
are from 1 mg to 3 mg taken one hour
before sleep.
As all dietary supplements melatonin is not controlled by
FDA. For this reason there is always question about purity of
the product and strength, they may vary from one producer to the other.
Melatonin Side Effects
Melatonin is usually well tolerated and relatively safe when taken as recommended. Nevertheless, some individuals may develop adverse effects including nausea, headache, fatigue, dizziness, hypothermia, irritability, or depression.
Melatonin and Cancer
Studies done in Europe show some promise of using Melatonin in prevention of some other diseases, for example cancer. It is, however, too early to come up with a definite conclusion.
Melatonin Supplements for Insomnia
