Ep. 314: Is Melatonin Safe?

In this episode, Stacy and Sarah discuss melatonin and whether it is safe to use for sleep

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• Intro (0:00)
• News and Views (0:40)
• Question from Brianna: " My daughter (10) has significant challenges falling asleep and has since she was one. I had to stop napping her at that age or she would be up until 12 at night. She still has a lot of problems falling asleep despite- reducing screen time (I am working on eliminating 2 hours before bed) she sleeps in a cool, dark room, etc.. Problem is-her brain doesn't shut off. Last year I introduced Melatonin to her and it made a world of difference and she is now getting 8+ hours of sleep a night. I have heard it referenced on your show I believe by Stacy that she has used it (or maybe a family member). I have also listened to "The Model Health Show" and he reports there that taking Melatonin is very harmful and will actually stop you from making your own. Can you provide any insight to this. I don't want to harm my daughter but I like her much better when she gets ample sleep :)"
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• Thank you for listening!
•   References:
• Immunomodulatory (synergistic with zinc) https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26130320, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25611919)
• Oncostatic https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/9247204
• Anticarcinogenic https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18815150
• Anti-aging https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/30092361
• Anti-obesogen https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24654916
• Hepato-protective https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24251672
• Balances effector vs regulatory T cells, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26130320)
• https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21893693 may help halt progression of disease activity in ulcerative colitis (5mg daily)
• 10g daily in RA, shifted inflammatory markers (some went up, some went down) and no change in symptoms: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17506781
• Tart cherry juice can stimulate melatonin secretion https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22038497
• Magnesium supplementation can improve melatonin levels in primary insomnia https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23853635
• Pediatric doses? 1-3mg in children https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4372534/
• I definitely recommend keeping the dose on the low side, say 0.1 to 0.5 mgram. https://academic.oup.com/sleep/article-pdf/20/10/908/13660931/sleep-20-10-908.pdf
• https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17506781 postmenopausal women showed increase in sleep quality over 26 weeks of supplementation, melatonin also aided weight loss on a 1500 calorie a day diet, 5mg daily
• https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/30045006 postmenopausal women had improvements in menopause symptoms and lost weight over 12 months, 3mg in the morning and 5mg in the evening
• https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21226679 a cocktail of 5 mg melatonin, 225 mg magnesium, and 11.25 mg zinc improved quality of sleep in primary insomnia
• 0.5mg enough to entrench circadian rhythms in blind people https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3682489/
• https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5096296/
• https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26579570
• https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/14698569
• https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/2514154
• review: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5798185/

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