Any concerns about melatonin?

[Mum2Es]

Is taking Melatonin nearly every night on an ongoing basis a problem for my nearly 8yo DD or myself? We started it a couple of months ago because her body clock was getting all messed up later night rehearsals twice a week, and now I feel like she NEEDS it if she's going to get to sleep before 10pm. And I take it quite frequently too, because I've been having trouble getting to sleep.

It's another 2 melatonin-taking months before the show we are rehearsing is over and Princess has the chance to settle back into a regular routine. Is there any reason at all that taking it every night for the next two months would be a concern?

I'm very anti-medication and giving my daughter pills of any sort is not something I'm comfortable with!

[Apple-Saucy]

Melatonin is something your body already makes naturally. The concern with taking it every night is that the body will reduce how much it is making because you are supplementing it. Reducing the Melatonin will help the body "reboot" and produce enough Melatonin to achieve sleep.

FWIW if your daughters sleep issues are stress related I would consider calms forte rather than Melatonin It will relieve the stress so she can sleep without messing with her bodies own melatonin levels.


(I use melatonin with my children who have chronic sleep issues as a way to reset their bodies.)

[Auroras mom]

Yes, yes, yes!! Many concerns.

Melatonin is not some benign substance, just because your body makes it. Your body makes estrogen also. Melatonin is a hormone, and taking it long term has been found to cause early development in children, and in grown ups - fatigue and depression. I was taking it every night before i knew this, and was incredibly depressed and paranoid. When I read about these possible side effects of melatonin, I stopped taking it and was *immediately* better.

It can have some benefits, but it can indeed also have negative side effects.

We still choose to give it to our dd for now, because she absolutley won't/can't sleep otherwise, but I have grave concerns about the long term consequences of this choice and am seeking other alternatives.

[Close2MyHeart]

Do you have an article about that from a trusted source?

[Calee]

Yes, yes, yes!! Many concerns.

Melatonin is not some benign substance, just because your body makes it. Your body makes estrogen also. Melatonin is a hormone, and taking it long term has been found to cause early development in children, and in grown ups - fatigue and depression. I was taking it every night before i knew this, and was incredibly depressed and paranoid. When I read about these possible side effects of melatonin, I stopped taking it and was *immediately* better.

It can have some benefits, but it can indeed also have negative side effects.

We still choose to give it to our dd for now, because she absolutley won't/can't sleep otherwise, but I have grave concerns about the long term consequences of this choice and am seeking other alternatives.

Yikes! I take it every single night, and have for awhile. I'd love to read more about this, if you remember where you saw the info.

[Auroras mom]

No time right now, but you can find it if you go digging. If i get a chance later, I can come back to this.

[MarynMunchkins]

It's worth noting that our psych has said that people with ADHD naturally make less melatonin and has no issues with us supplementing every night. :)

[Auroras mom]

I guess I do have a moment:P .

Yep, lots of docs are saying its okay and pushing large amounts. It is also worth noting that rampant use of this is a relatively new phenomenon, and it has precious little in the way of study. It is also worth noting doctors will happily push many things many of us here do not agree with and that they often have donelittle to no research into meds and supplements they are recommending. It is also worth noting many doctors are becoming very uncomfortable with its long term use.

Dr. Oz did an entire show on it recently, and while I don't take everything he has to say as scritpure, I did find it at the same time I was questioning what was going on with me and doing research ont he topic.

[Apple-Saucy]

It's worth noting that our psych has said that people with ADHD naturally make less melatonin and has no issues with us supplementing every night. :)

Yes. People with different brain chemistry than the norm like those with ADHD and ASD's make less melatonin than typical people. :yes

It's also worth noting that people who already suffer from depression and anxiety often have sleep disturbances that melatonin may exacerbate. Which causes a chicken and the egg scenario, if the user did not realize their depression prior to taking melatonin.


FWIW CORRECTING sleep issues can be done with Melatonin safely and taking a low dose of melatonin is not "dangerous" is it best...no...it is best to make lifestyle changes and listen to your body and your child's body.

[HomeWithMyBabies]

I would be cautious and try other means first. We did use it for a long time with my middle ds at the suggestion of his neurologist. We also tried it with our older child but he wound up having terrible nightmares after a few weeks of use.

I had read something about potential retina damage at one time, but it was years ago and I don't know if that's been debunked or not. It's just not been studied enough for me to make it a regular one of our options.

[Auroras mom]

The retina damage concerns are still being documented and studied.


Here is an article that I think is very well written.

http://www.kidsoc.org/news/press/entry/the-dangers-of-melatonin-in-children-a-problem-of-overuse-by-parents-1

Apple Saucy, I am in the ASD/ADHD/SPD community and I am well aware of what we are being told as the reasons for why these kids can't sleep and why melatonin helps. As I said, I use it for my dd out of desperation b/c she will not sleep otherwise, but I do not necessarily think it is safe, and hope to not have to keep doing it much longer.

[Apple-Saucy]

As I said above when we have used it we use it to correct sleep issues. and that is typically a month or so of use...it is a specific protocol used to force their bodies to produce an adequate amount of melatonin.

;)

[dakotablue]

Something I found helpful I found/ did. We are very influenced by scent. So everynight while I was giving melatonin I put lavender lotion on Pumpkin's feet and chest. We did this solid for a week, he still occasionally gets a lower dose of melationin, but now the scent of lavender has started to trigger the same effect.

But yes, my understanding is that long term use is not healthy.

[Sonata]

Tonya, that was an interesting article. I am not sure I would go so far to agree with him that giving melatonin is the same as giving a steroid.... :shrug3 I think with the number of people taking it over the last decade or so, some effects would be becoming obvious.

We use melatonin, but not nightly. We use it for ds mostly if there is some reason why he really can't go to sleep. It feels safer than having him short 2 or 3 hours of sleep in the morning.

I do use it nightly, though. I went through a period with a lot of other health things going on, and my sleep suffered dramatically too. I've been afraid of just dropping it suddenly, but maybe I'll work on scaling back.

[Mum2Es]

:eek I'm glad I asked!

OK, so I need an alternative. The problem is, at the moment, and until the end of March, Princess has 2 nights each week where she doesn't get to bed until 10:30-11pm (rehearsals). The other nights, bedtime is 8:15-8:30. On the early nights, she has a lot of difficulty falling asleep because her body clock is all confused by the late nights.

Suggestions, please?