#129 - More Than 20 Questions About Melatonin
Artwork by Filip Obbel from Sleep Cycle.
This week I’ve been delving back into the melatonin scientific literature.
And I’ve learned a lot!
But it’s not about melatonin’s links with sleep or circadian rhythms - but its links with non-sleep conditions.
As background, I’m writing a 4-part series on melatonin in my role as Head of Science for Sleep Cycle.
Part 1 has been published, and it is basically 20 questions about melatonin. Indeed, the title of Part 1 is “Melatonin in Numbers” - including questions like:
How long does melatonin stay in your body?
How much melatonin can adults take for sleep?
How long should you take melatonin for?
To read the full list of Questions - and Answers - check out the Sleep Cycle blog here.
But it seems that there where still some left over questions people were curious about when it comes to taking melatonin.
So now I’ll answer a few more questions that were posed after this blog was published …
Tolerance?
People likely ask about whether we can build up a tolerance to using melatonin because that what happens in a number of traditional sleep medications - especially the benzodiazepine Temazepam.
Well the shortest answer is that if we did develop a tolerance to melatonin, then we’d know about it.
So too would Google Scholar.
But instead, it is very clear that melatonin can help us in the present day, in a different way than you’d imagine.
At least in Australia, the price of fruits and vegetables has sky rocketed.
So if you’re thinking of getting your veggie patch ready (aka, vegetable garden), maybe think about whether your veggies (aka, vegetables) could do with some melatonin …
Reducing Our Production?
There is a belief that if you keep taking melatonin that your body will adapt and not produce as much melatonin. This belief is along the similar lines to the tolerance question. That’s because when our brains reliably receive a benzodiazepine, then our brains adjust to this constant supply.
The closest evidence of what can happen from long-term use of melatonin comes from sheep.
Sheep that are implanted with a constant dose of melatonin - night and day.
And these sheep get really high doses.
Way more than you’d need for sleep.
But there appears to be no evidence that long-term use of melatonin reduces the body’s supply.
Not even in sheep.
Nightmares?
I too have heard of people who say that they get nightmares when they take melatonin.
This is ‘data’ I’ve gained from the clinical-practice-side of working in sleep.
But what happens when we look for the ‘data’ from the sleep science?
First, we can definitively delete the word ‘common’ in this question. I’ve already searched for the most common side effects from using melatonin, and nightmares was not amongst them.
Second, there are some scientific papers that mention in their text that people can get nightmares from taking melatonin. But these comments are not substantiated with any data. One study provides a reference, but when reading that reference - there is no data reported.
Third, conversely, if there is data showing a link between nightmares and melatonin, it’s from case studies (ie, data from a single person) - and showing that melatonin successfully treated nightmares.
Conclusions?
I know Carolyn asked about nightmares, as well as the paradoxical effect of causing alertness/insomnia.
I can answer this in two words for anyone reading this.
Scholar and Google.
And not in that order.
Some of us are old enough remember going to the library and flicking through little pieces of cardboard in small drawers to find scientific journals in the library (if you’re not that old, watch the beginning of Ghostbusters).
The hunt for articles was actually a little exciting.
Especially the discovery aspect of the hunt.
And that’s what research is about - discovery.
These days, you can discover so freakin much about how our world works. And for the most part it’s free. Say those two words with me … “Google Scholar”.
Prof MG
After some technical issues, I’m happy to say that the Replays for the 3rd WINK Sleep Conference is now available.
Please check your Inbox for an email that was sent to you last week. If it’s not in your Inbox, then please search your Junk and SPAM folders.
Many thanks to our wonderful speakers who collectively gave us a great snapshot of how technology is helping us better to understand sleep!