A naturally occurring hormone found in the body, melatonin is one of the hormones in the brain that causes sleep problems when deficient. Melatonin naturally regulates your sleep cycles, and it is found in small amounts in meats, fruits, and vegetables. Your body produces it at ranging intervals throughout the day. In a normal body, you will see more melatonin production in the body than in the early morning hours.

Melatonin Details

But during winter months, with less sunlight and less vitamin D, the body actually produces less melatonin of its own. And melatonin production naturally decreases as you get younger. So it is recommended that many older people take melatonin as they age in order to get better sleep. It has also been used to address problems with SAD or Seasonal Affective Disorder.

Even for those who are not younger however, a lack of sleep indicates that there may be a problem in the balance of melatonin. Of course, if you have sleep problems, there are other ingredients that many have successfully used to treat sleep problems, especially when combined with melatonin. But melatonin is one of the most effective ingredients.

One MIT study in 2005 in fact confirmed that melatonin is an effective sleep aid even for insomniacs. They used only small doses of about .3mg. Ironically, using more actually makes it stop working after a few days. But this tiny amount produces results and keeps it effective for far longer periods of time.

Melatonin Conclusion

Melatonin can be found in all major outlets. It can be found in drugstores, pharmacies, grocery stores, and online. You can buy it in varying doses, and it can help you to achieve substantially better sleep aid results without disrupting REM cycles. Side effects have been known to include daytime sleepiness, dizziness, headaches, and sleepwalking.

And it can have certain interactions with medications. So you should consult with your doctor before using it in combination mainly with anticoagulants, immunosuppressants, or birth control pills. But if used correctly, it can be effective in helping you to get peaceful and restful sleep.