Melatonin

[greatunclebill]

My pulmonologist/sleep doc gave me some samples of Remfresh melatonin 2mg, to help me to stay in deep sleep. It seems to be working.

As it's OTC, I'll need to buy it when the samples run out. Remfresh seems to be expensive compared to others. Is there something special about it or are the melatonin's all basically the same? 10mg seems like a big jump, but would there be any big problems trying 3 or 4mg?

Thanks.

[LSAT]

I use the 3mg from Costco. I use 1/2 pill. I find that I can fall asleep very easily for about 5-6 hours....then I have problems getting more sleep.

[RogerSC]

I get 0.3mg melatonin pills from Amazon, myself, and take one at bedtime. If you read about it on the internet you'll find that more isn't necessarily better. The starting dose that I've seen recommended is .3mg, and the going to 2 of those if 1 isn't enough up to 3 of the .3mg pills. The thing is that your body also makes melatonin as part of your natural sleep cycle, so you can knock things out of kilter if you add too much. I'm kind of going from the fact that I'm getting old, and melatonin production goes down some as you get older. In that case, I'm kind of replacing the natural melatonin that my body would make.

Anyways, that's what I've read and heard. It does seem to help me sleep, so I'm sticking with the above *smile*.

[greatunclebill]

Thanks. so basically any melatonin should get the same results?

[lilly747]

I wish I knew. I take 3 to 6 mg from Trader Joe's. The dose depends on the person, I have heard that if you take too much, for you, it will cause middle of the night wakening. But I don't know if that's correct or not. If i wake, I take more...
I have heard there is a sustained release also. I was thanking about trying to find that product, to see how it works..

[USMCVet]

Pretty sure it's all the same. I have it in 3mg and usually take 2 without issue. I've taken up to 12mg at a time again with no issue. I actually took 12mg for my last titration study and had 84% sleep efficiency.

[Lucyhere]

Thanks. so basically any melatonin should get the same results?

You might want to do some googling. Different brands contain different ingredients, and there is also the possibility of an interaction with other meds. I was told to take the lowest dose possible (1mg) to start. Remfresh is awfully expensive. I would want to find out why.

[jipavl]

Hello,

I recommend being careful with the dosage.
The side effects are not well studied and understood, and even the effectiveness of melatonin supplements is not entirely clear. I'm no expert but did a cursory google search.

See for example here: https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/me ... 40567a1e1e

[Sheriff Buford]

I take a 3 mg. tablet with two Magnesium tablets every night. Have been doing it for years. Works great for me. I buy both of em' at Wal-Mart.

Sheriff

[rzw]

I would use caution with the melatonin.....it is a hormone and really only meant to use on a short term basis to get your sleep cycle back on track....In my experience, there are some folks that can take a medium to high dose on a regular basis and seem to do okay with it.....However, others will have issues with waking up after 3-5 hours of dosing....what is happening there, is melatonin cycle is ending early and the cortisol release is kicking in, causing the arousal.....I have found in my experience and with others I have worked with, it is difficult to "hack" the bodies natural sleep process without messing up other mechanisms, when using hormone type products, that in the end cause more issues then beneficial.

I would agree, .3 to .5 dose is really the optimal dose without having to much issue....but again, for only short term use........Hard to find a lot of brands at this dose, so you may have to cut some pills to get to this dose.....When I played with melatonin, the best one I found was Jarrow brand....melatonin sustain....it is a time released melatonin, 1mg....that to me was a very good dose.....the time released works well.....But like others, after a couple of weeks, I started to find myself waking up within 3-5 hours after taking and could not go back to sleep.....So again, when you start messing with hormones, and changing what the body wants to do naturally, the body will find a work around and you will usually start to find that you have the opposite results or at least, that the same results as when you started out....

If you want to use something that you can use on a consistent basis, without a doubt, Magnesium will do the job.....Magnesium can be used for initiating sleep and staying sleep.....Its usually a matter of getting the right dose....In my personal experience and others I have worked with, once you get to the 200-350mg dose range, you will start to get the benefits for sleep.....At these dosages, you will be able to get into a deep sleep....There are 2 forms I recommend....

1. Magnesium Citrate....this is the most common form out there.....This form is very absorbable....magnesium is bound with citric acid which gives better absorption into the system.....with that being said, citric acid helps pull more water into the colon which can stimulate bowel movements, so keep this in mind....if you take during the day, it may make you more lethargic.....so most folks like to take this in the evening.....you will have to play with timing, but usually 1 hour to 3 hours before bed should do the trick....once it kicks in, its like having a glass of wine, you will feel very relaxed.....

2. Magnesium Malate.....not as common form....you will have to look in health food stores for this or you can order online at amazon...Designs for health, brand, is good..it is a 180mg per cap, so you only need to take 1 or 2 a day......I personally take this one.....its highly absorbable as well, as its bound with malic acid...why I like this is, malic acid helps with the bodies, natural energy producing mechanisms.....it's not like taking a stimulant, its a natural overall feeling of more energy you get from malic acid.....malic acid is also good for body aches and pains.....this is one reason why I like it, it reduces the inflammation that I feel, as I love to lift weights, and this helps to alleviate some of the muscle and joint tenderness that I tend to feel.....Malic acid is also good for your digestion and liver.....So you can take this form during the day, with no problems of feeling lethargic.....I usually take one at breakfast and one at lunch.....I do recommend taking with food....but taking your magnesium like this during the day, with still help with initiating sleep and staying sleep.....

3. Magnesium Glycinate...this is a 3rd choice if you want to take something right before you go to sleep as well......However, I have found that it can be a 50/50 shot with some folks.....meaning it works really well, or it can have the opposite affects.....Glycine has some really beneficial uses for the body....but it may help with the serotonin and gaba reactions, and this is why it can help promote sleep.....In my experience, taking this form of magnesium works pretty quickly.....you can take this one hour before bed......

In conclusion, any of the forms will work well.....And I personally believe will be better for helping you have a more natural sleep without being disruptive to the sleep cycle.....about 2 months ago, I was talking to my dentist and he mentioned he didn't sleep that great....He was taking sleeping pills about every night....we talked about magnesium....He purchased the malate....he takes 180mg at breakfast and he does another one at dinner time.....He called me 1 week later to say, it was amazing....he is sleeping better than he ever has and no more sleeping pills.....

Just a footnote, i am not a doctor....I did own a few health nutrition stores for about 15 years, so I have a lot of practiacl expereince in this area and have personally used a lot of supplements over the years for my own experiences......

I hope this helps....

[PaulKTF]

I recommend that you specifically look for time-lapse / time release Melatonin. I take 5mg a night to help me get to sleep and stay asleep and it works great. I buy the Natrol brand on Amazon.

[Passport in-hand]

First and foremost: a shout to 'rzw', thanks for the info - good to know other alternatives.
Second, I've cut-and-paste my comment from an October 2017 post.
Note: medicated outcomes are varied from each individuals. This posting/comment is something that works for me - it may not work for others.

Since 2005-2006 (way before I started using CPAP) I had a terrible time staying asleep. I had no problem going to sleep (9:30-10:30), however I would get up at 2:30-3AM every morning - and I had no problem staying awake during the day (most of the time). My friend recommended me taking Tylenol PM - but historically I have an adverse effect with Acetaminophen. Rather, I used Advil PM which contains ibuprofen (IBU). It worked!I used Advil PM for 2+ years. Why did I stopped? Advil PM contains IBU, which requires you to have something in your stomach due to stomach irritation and possible ulcers (states on the bottle). I often go to bed on an empty stomach - and taking any forms of IBU on an empty stomach is 'no good'! I consulted with my uncle who is and internal medicine physician - he recommended Benadryl, melatonin or Doxylamine Succinate. I tried them all; here are my results.

Benadryl: It's essentially allergy medicine that makes you drowsy. It worked ok - but at the time it was a bit expensive
Melatonin (GNC 10mg): My work colleague recommended this as well due to his traveling and jet lag mitigation plan. For me, it takes a 1.5 hrs to kick in, plus it left me with a terrible hang over. And it does not sustain me through the night.
Doxylamine Succinate (Kirkland Sleep Aid KSA): This works best for me. It kicks-in within the hour and sustains my sleep through the night. I've used KSA for 5+ years now.
Important to note: I've used the above after drinking - don't. First and foremost, the sleep-assist drugs mixed with alcohol is not recommended. Plus, it intensifies the hang-overs the next next day leaving you more drowsy than without proper sleep.

[LoneStar]

Another thing I don't think anyone else mentioned - try to use melatonin that is sublingual (dissolves under the tongue) instead of oral. The body absorbs it better if it doesn't go through the gut.

My husband uses the 2.5 mg sublingual tablet made by Source Naturals which can be found and purchased on Amazon among others.

Lisa