Are you one of the 80% of American adults who want to improve their sleep? If you are, then you've probably come across the word melatonin. Maybe you've tried some before, or maybe you are wondering if it could help you sleep better. Whether you've taken it or not, do you know what melatonin actually is?
Melatonin is a naturally occurring hormone that is bio-synthesized in the pineal gland of your brain. So when you are supplementing with melatonin, yes you are taking something that is a hormone in your body. This hormone plays a large role in your sleep-wake cycle and circadian rhythm; hence its popularity as a sleep aid supplement. (1)
You could also get some melatonin naturally in your diet. It's found in very small amounts in several foods such as nuts, and it can also be created by the body from protein sources. This happens when the body converts the amino acid L-Tryptophan into serotonin (the happy neurotransmitter), and eventually converts that into melatonin (This is the premise behind the story of turkey at Thanksgiving making you sleepy).
However you get your melatonin, why should you consider taking it? Well unfortunately, many people's natural production of this hormone have decreased. This happens with age and with disrupted light-dark cycles. Most people still have lights on in their home and stare at screens after the sun goes down. Therefore, giving your body some extra melatonin can help restock its natural stores. Plus, melatonin is not only great for improving sleep, but it has also been shown to potentially help with intense headache symptoms (2), specific cases of anxiety (3), and decreasing fat mass (4).
These are all reasons why Melatonin is included in our Pinnacle Relax & Sleep Aid. But how much melatonin do we include you may ask? Great question!
We chose 5 mg because that is the dosage with the most solid body of evidence. Several studies indicate 5 mg can improve sleep parameters, both by itself and in combination with other supplements that we included in our Relax & Sleep Aid. (5) (6) Plus, a meta-analysis concluded that melatonin not only decreases time to fall asleep and increases total sleep time, but also that these effects do not appear to go away with continued use. Which means you can take it consistently. (7) This meta-analysis also concluded that higher dosages are more effective than lower dosages. A Cochrane-Analysis came to a similar conclusion by saying 5 mg helps people fall asleep faster and sleep better than 0.5 mg. It also states that doses above 5 mg do not appear to be any more effective, making 5 mg the best dosage. (8)
On top of all this research on 5 mg of Melatonin, we also have 11 other ingredients in our Pinnacle Relax & Sleep Aid at clinical dosages to help you do just that; relax and sleep better. If you'd like to see if it can help you count some more sheep, then don't hesitate to click the link! Be one of the 20% of American adults who are happy with their sleep :)
1. https://www.nccih.nih.gov/health/melatonin-
2. https://jnnp.bmj.com/content/87/10/1127.
3. https://www.cochranelibrary.com/cdsr/doi/
4. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/2635286
5. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/8956204/
6. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21226679/
7. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/
8. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/12076414/
