Getting a Good Night’s Sleep – Melatonin Review

Try melatonin for restorative sleep at night for a no “hangover” morning the next day.  Melatonin might require a few days to start working, but remember natural products are simply nutritional support for sleep – not knock out pills.  But, with consistency, restorative sleep may help you feel refreshed the next day with time.  With the right nutrition and melatonin supplement, you can get deeper sleep, resulting in more energy and feeling of well-being the next day.  Furthermore, a good night’s sleep strengthens and repairs the immune system.  Plus, it simply feels good!

Melatonin is a hormone secreted by the pineal gland (part of the endocrine system) and has been widely studied for its ability to produce sleep. In the body, melatonin is secreted in response to darkness, causing sleepiness, to help regulate the body’s natural wake-sleep cycle.  When exposure to light decreases melatonin increases, but decreases when light exposure increased.   For those with disturbances in their sleep cycle (not work or travel related), melatonin used is for treatment.  It has also shown promise for people with withdrawing from sleeping medications, and for improving sleep in people with diabetes, schizophrenia, Alzheimer’s disease, or Parkinson’s disease, or who are hospitalized

Studies have found that people with fibromyalgia have low melatonin levels. Supplementation with melatonin resulted in improved sleep and lowered requirements for prescription drugs.

A Swedish study determined that patients with fibromyalgia produce less melatonin during hours of darkness than do healthy control subject s, making melatonin therapy potentially helpful as a sleep aid.

Researchers in Argentina conducted a pilot study in which they found that sleep patterns, sleep quality, and pain measures markedly improve in patients with fibromyalgia after 4 weeks of treatment with melatonin.

In the United States, a double blind, placebo-controlled study showed that 20 percent of the patients with fibromyalgia significantly improved their sleep patterns and quality when they took 6 mg of melatonin each night before bed.

To aid in falling asleep: Typically a dose of 2-3 mg of melatonin is taken one half-hour to one hour before bedtime, although recommendations vary from 0.5 to 5 mg

For irritable bowel syndrome, often associated with fibromyalgia, take 3 mg at bedtime daily.

The melatonin supplements selected for testing all passed in relation to their claimed amounts of melatonin, properly broke apart in digestion and were found lead-free.

The following 18 melatonin supplements are safe for consumption and treating sleep disturbances in fibromyalgia sufferers, in alphabetical order:

• CVS ® Pharmacy Melatonin (3,000 mcg per tablet, 1 per day)
• Dr. Ronald Hoffman/Vitamin Shoppe M.D. Select, Advanced Sleep Formula (750 mcg per capsule, 2 per day)
• Formula 605™ Dietary Melatonin Supplement (3,000 mcg per capsule, 1-2 per day)
• Futurebiotics Melatonin (3,000 mcg per tablet, 1 per day)
• GNC Melatonin 3 (3,000 mcg per tablet, 1 per day)
• Life Extension® Melatonin (3,000 mcg per lozenge, 1 per day)
• Melatonin Solution™ (1,000 mcg per full dropper (1 dropper = 1 c.c.), 1-3 per day)
• MidNite® (1,500 mcg per chewable tablet, 1 per day)
• Nature Made® Melatonin (3,000 mcg per tablet, 1 per day)
• Nature’s Bounty® Melatonin 5 mg (5,000 mcg per tablet, 1 per day)
• Olympian Labs Incorporated Melatonin (3,000 mcg per capsule, 1 per day)
• Pure Encapsulations® Melatonin (3,000 mcg per capsule, 1 per day)
• Schiff® Melatonin Plus (3,000 mcg per tablet, 1 per day)
• Sunsource® Melatonex® (3,000 mcg per time-release tablet, 1 per day)
• Unicity™ Melatonin (2,500 mcg per sublingual tablet, 1 per day)
• Vitaline® Melatonin Forte™ with L-Theanine (3,000 mcg per tablet, 1 per day)
• Vitamin Shoppe™ Melatonin (3,000 mcg per capsule, 1 per day)
• Vitamin World® Melatonin 3 mg (3,000 mcg per tablet, 1 per day)

Sleep disturbances and the disruption of circadian rhythms frequently occur in fibromyalgia. Melatonin has often been shown to synchronize circadian rhythms and improve the quality of sleep. Consider melatonin as an option, either alone or in conjunction with other treatments, when treating fibromyalgia associated sleep disturbances.