Your brain naturally makes melatonin. Yet we find that more and more people, especially those with sleep issues, take melatonin supplements. While a melatonin supplement may help with this problem, supplementing with melatonin benefits more than just your sleep. It may help address other issues as well.
Melatonin is a hormone produced in the pineal gland, which is situated in the brain. Primarily produced in response to darkness, melatonin plays a significant role in your circadian rhythm and, thus, your sleep cycle. The pineal gland decreases its melatonin production in response to light.
Yet melatonin plays a significant role in other body functions as well. It may affect blood pressure, cortisol, blood sugar, and immune function. The hormone also has neuroprotective and cell protection functions and affects reproductive health.
The hormone also acts as an antioxidant1. This suggests melatonin may positively affect many health conditions connected to free radicals. Furthermore, numerous studies show that melatonin benefits those suffering from acid reflux1, issues with the eyes2, the elderly, and seasonal depression3.
Melatonin benefits a wide range of health issues and conditions. We will look at a few of these.
Insomnia is a sleep disorder. People may struggle to fall asleep, stay asleep, get quality sleep, or do both. Melatonin plays a role in promoting a healthy circadian rhythm, i.e., the sleep-wake cycle.
The most common cause of insomnia is stress, which may result from psychological, physiological, or environmental factors. The condition can persist for a few days, weeks, or months. If insomnia persists for more than a month, it is referred to as chronic insomnia.
Melatonin benefits insomnia by promoting sleep on the one hand while muting your brain’s wake-up signals on the other. Your brain makes use of neurotransmitters to send these wake-up signals or messages.
A melatonin supplement may help you fall asleep faster by seven minutes and sleep eight minutes longer, according to a study on using melatonin to treat primary sleep disorders4. Some studies suggest longer periods for both. Taking a melatonin supplement two hours before bedtime may help you fall asleep quicker and enhance your sleep quality.
Taking melatonin may support at least five hours of uninterrupted sleep. This, however, depends on the melatonin supplement used and the dosage. Taking melatonin every night for up to two months is also considered safe. You should ideally see your healthcare practitioner if you still suffer from insomnia after this time.
Please note that no evidence suggests melatonin is addictive. You should thus not get any withdrawal symptoms if you stop using this supplement.
Children can and do suffer from sleep disorders. This could affect their ability to function and impact their quality of life. Children most susceptible to sleep disorders include those with the following conditions:
A melatonin supplement may help these children sleep better. This could improve their behavior and ability to function during the day. What is more, it could help these children fall asleep quicker and sleep for longer periods.
Please note that we recommend you only give children a melatonin supplement under the guidance of a healthcare provider. They are best able to determine the supplement’s suitability and dosage. In general, the lowest possible dose to see effects is ideal.
Melatonin’s high antioxidant activity can help prevent cellular damage to the eyes. The hormone may thus benefit those with eye issues. These issues include macular degeneration, a condition common in the elderly, and glaucoma5.
Obesity is not only a fast-growing problem in the USA. It affects countries across the globe. The main causes of increased weight gain include:
Processed foods increase your body’s stress load, producing higher cortisol. Your body’s NeuroEndoMetabolic (NEM) stress response, governed by the brain, initiates the fight or flight response when experiencing stress. This is why the adrenal glands produce more cortisol. Constantly elevated cortisol levels may start affecting your body’s production of other hormones like melatonin. Lower melatonin levels are one of the leading causes of insomnia. Higher cortisol and lower melatonin levels may also affect your body’s weight. Inadequate sleep is connected to overeating and weight gain.
Melatonin plays a role in metabolism and helps to regulate blood sugar levels. When blood sugar levels are high, the body cannot break down enough sugar and stores what it cannot use as fat. If not addressed, people with compromised melatonin levels may develop type-2 diabetes.
A melatonin supplement may help prevent obesity, especially in those struggling with sleep issues.
People who travel across multiple time zones often find their circadian rhythm has not caught up. As a result, they have sleep problems and other issues. These include:
Taking a melatonin supplement for a few days may help their bodies sync with the new time zone and thus help them develop a new sleep pattern in line with their new time zone.
GERD results from stomach acid flowing back up into the esophagus. This causes symptoms like nausea, burping, and heartburn. Melatonin can block stomach acid secretions and decrease nitric oxide production. The latter relaxes the lower esophageal sphincter and allows stomach acid to move into the esophagus.
Please note that GERD is often a symptom of adrenal fatigue, a disorder with a variety of possible symptoms that is associated with stress and an initial high cortisol production.
We need this hormone for growth and cellular regeneration. Higher levels may also increase muscle mass and strength. Melatonin may help boost HGH levels. This may result from melatonin’s antioxidant activity as it may encourage a quicker healing time after exercise.
Seasonal depression, i.e., seasonal affective disorder, may affect up to ten percent of the population. This depression relates to seasonal changes and usually appears in late fall and early winter. These seasonal changes, when it gets dark earlier and light later, may affect your circadian rhythm. These changes in the circadian rhythm may cause depression in some people. A melatonin supplement may help regulate the circadian rhythm and support low mood.
People who work night shifts often feel sleepy and find sleeping difficult during the day.
Taking a melatonin supplement after getting home after a shift may help these people go to sleep and sleep a little longer during the day.
People with Delayed Sleep-Wake Phase Disorder (DSWPD) do not sleep and wake at the same time as others. They usually only feel sleepy between two and six in the morning and typically wake up between ten and one in the afternoon.
Taking a melatonin supplement may help these people go to sleep a little earlier and thus wake earlier. However, a melatonin supplement may not be enough to help people with this disorder get back into a normal sleeping pattern.
Many people fear using a melatonin supplement before bedtime out of concern that it will cause a decreased production of the hormone in the brain. However, this does not appear to be a problem.
However, certain factors can decrease your pineal gland's hormone production ability. Aging is the main culprit, and amounts also reduce during puberty. Other factors that influence melatonin production include stress and various health issues. These include certain mood disorders, type-2 diabetes, dementia, cancer, and severe pain.
The best time to take a melatonin supplement is before bed. It usually takes about thirty minutes before it starts to work, although it can take up to an hour for some people. The usual starting dose is 1mg, although some people may need to increase the dosage to help them fall asleep. Different delivery forms, such as liquid, tablet, or gummies, may also take different times to be effective.
We suggest you talk to your healthcare provider about using a melatonin supplement and determining the perfect dosage for your needs.
Consider the ingredients when choosing a melatonin supplement. Not all melatonin supplements are created equal, and many have ingredients that affect their effectiveness.
The best melatonin supplements are not artificially manufactured but come from natural sources. This reduces your chances of developing any reactions.
If you are looking for the best melatonin supplement, you could try Melamax. The supplement contains only natural ingredients to help with your sleeping issues. It's also liquid, so dosing could be much easier to titrate.
Melatonin, when taken in appropriate quantities, is generally considered a safe supplement. Some of the most common side effects associated with taking a melatonin supplement include:
Some people may also experience short periods of depression, mild anxiety, irritability, disorientated, confusion, abdominal cramping, and even mild tremors.
People who operate machinery should not do so within five hours of taking melatonin, nor should they drive a vehicle. If you suffer from an autoimmune disease, please only use this type of supplement with your healthcare provider’s blessing.
A melatonin supplement may also have interactions with certain medications. These include blood thinners, blood pressure medications, and antidepressants. Only use this supplement after talking to your healthcare provider first.
A melatonin supplement can have several benefits, such as helping to reset your circadian rhythm, addressing insomnia and other sleep disorders, and reducing other conditions such as obesity, GERD, eye problems, and seasonal depression.
However, some of these issues, like insomnia, obesity, and GERD, are symptomatic of adrenal fatigue. While a melatonin supplement like Melamax may help with these issues, a comprehensive approach is best. The Adrenal Fatigue Recovery Program addresses adrenal fatigue and the condition’s many associated health issues. It is a comprehensive, holistic program designed to help you take control of every aspect of your life.
Melamax is a melatonin supplement for insomnia
Arendt, Josephine, and Anna Aulinas. Physiology of the Pineal Gland and Melatonin. National Center for Biotechnology Information, U.S. National Library of Medicine, 2022, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK550972/.
Claustrat, Bernard, and Jean Leston. “Melatonin: Physiological Effects in Humans.” Neuro-Chirurgie, vol. 61, no. 2-3, 2015, pp. 77-84. PubMed, https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25908646/.
Ferracioli-Oda, E., A. Qawasmi, and M. H. Bloch. “Meta-Analysis: Melatonin for the Treatment of Primary Sleep Disorders.” PLOS ONE, vol. 8, no. 5, 2013, e63773. PLOS ONE, https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0063773.
Lewy, Alfred J., et al. “The Circadian Basis of Winter Depression.” Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, vol. 103, no. 19, 2006, pp. 7414-9. PubMed, https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/16648247/.
Lundmark, Per O., et al. “Role of Melatonin in the Eye and Ocular Dysfunctions.” Visual Neuroscience, vol. 23, no. 6, 2006, pp. 853-62. Cambridge Core, https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/visual-neuroscience/article/abs/role-of-melatonin-in-the-eye-and-ocular-dysfunctions/.
Yi, Changxian, et al. “Effects of Melatonin in Age-Related Macular Degeneration.” Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, vol. 1057, 2005, pp. 384-92. PubMed, https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/16399908/.
Addressing certain adrenal fatigue issues is a melatonin benefit. The hormone plays a role in many body processes and can help you prevent or mitigate some of the issues associated with adrenal fatigue such as sleep problems and weight gain. Your healthcare provider is best suited to discuss this with you.
