When we have difficulty falling asleep , many people advise us to take melatonin for sleep. This is because melatonin is increasingly advertised as a miraculous remedy for insomnia. Most preparations described by manufacturers as melatonin for sleep can be bought without a prescription.
Although melatonin is a hormone , it is sold as a dietary supplement in Poland, which should not be the case. In , scientists at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology MIT discovered in their laboratories that melatonin given in tablets helps with falling asleep. Volunteers were divided into two groups , the experimental group and the control group. Those in the experimental group received small doses of melatonin before bedtime, while the control group received a placebo.
It was found that people taking melatonin for sleep fell asleep on average within 5 minutes , while with a placebo, it took about 15 minutes. Since the publication of the research results, the world has been enthusiastic about this hormone , without considering or paying attention to the possibility of melatonin overdose. When reporting this discovery, the media often ignored the contraindications for taking melatonin for sleep. It was hailed as a breakthrough in the fight against insomnia , increasing its sales.
It was widely called melatonin the only natural substance that is supposed to be an alternative to sleeping pills , which are not always safe. It was particularly recommended for people working in shift systems and those experiencing sleep difficulties due to stress , among other reasons. Many people also take it because of pain caused by discopathy or other spine-related conditions.
However, the enthusiasm of many patients and journalists regarding the supposed impossibility of melatonin overdose was not shared by the scientific community. Doctors acknowledged that melatonin in tablets can be helpful in treating sleep problems, but it was recommended only for older people , i. This is because the calcification of the pineal gland , the gland that naturally produces melatonin , progresses with age.
