FYI, every melatonin supplement is way too high of a dose and is completely saturating your melatonin receptors, leading to tolerance and dependency.
Your body is not producing more than .5mg of melatonin naturally, so taking a 5mg supplement is far too much. And they sell 15-20mg too. If you can find 1mg that’s best; but what’s even better in the long run is not using it!
I know it's said over and over and over, but regular exercise!! There are certain types and times of exercise that are more effective, but generally speaking, exercise promotes serotonin conversion to melatonin and makes sleepy time easier.
Absolutely! Additionally, morning sun is another great way to regulate your circadian clock and let your body start its internal timer for melatonin release.
In the winter, I use a light box for seasonal affective disorder, and in addition to feeling much more energized, I find it helps me get more consistent sleep!
Interesting. I have SAD, I'll look into this, thanks!
Please do! Research has shown that as little as 20 minutes of light therapy in the morning can have positive effects
We buy 1mg. Once we couldn't find any so we bought 3mg and cut them in half. I found it interesting that OP used actual dosage for caffeine but not for melatonin. Three pills could be 3mg or 60+.
That’s great! I really do think 1-1.5mg is the upper limit anyone should use, although it’s still higher than free melatonin concentration in your brain it’s a much more reasonable dose in comparison.
And I think most people who don’t understand melatonin go straight for the 20mg, so we’re probably talking 60+.
It really blows my mind that in this day and age there are no regulations or at the very least warnings or guidelines regarding melatonin supplements.
The gap in FDA policy for prescription drugs vs supplements is vast. Supplements have very few regulations and restrictions that create a lot of potential issues for the uninformed consumer.
Bioavailability of oral melatonin is very poor though. IIRC it's about 10%, so that 5mg sounds about right.
That’s a great point! You’re definitely right. I’m seeing somewhere between 10-30% depending on patient population.
That being said, since we are naturally releasing .5mg, another .5mg is already double the normal concentration.
Another major point of consideration though would be formulation, as that is going to have a large effect on the half life of the dose in your system. Even if bioavailability is around physiological concentration at 5mg, the duration of the exposure being much longer than the time it takes for natural release would still have negative impact.
All this being said, definitely never a reason to go above 5mg
How is it with Quetiapin Sandoz? One pill is 25mg and i'm tired until noon, so i usually cut them in half.
Quetiapin is an antipsychotic medication, not the same as melatonin which is a naturally occurring hormone.
0x0 is correct. If it’s a prescribed medication then my comment is not relevant! I am referring to over the counter supplements
FYI, every melatonin supplement is way too high of a dose and is completely saturating your melatonin receptors, leading to tolerance and dependency.
Your body is not producing more than .5mg of melatonin naturally, so taking a 5mg supplement is far too much. And they sell 15-20mg too. If you can find 1mg that’s best; but what’s even better in the long run is not using it!
I know it's said over and over and over, but regular exercise!! There are certain types and times of exercise that are more effective, but generally speaking, exercise promotes serotonin conversion to melatonin and makes sleepy time easier.
Absolutely! Additionally, morning sun is another great way to regulate your circadian clock and let your body start its internal timer for melatonin release.
In the winter, I use a light box for seasonal affective disorder, and in addition to feeling much more energized, I find it helps me get more consistent sleep!
Interesting. I have SAD, I'll look into this, thanks!
Please do! Research has shown that as little as 20 minutes of light therapy in the morning can have positive effects
We buy 1mg. Once we couldn't find any so we bought 3mg and cut them in half. I found it interesting that OP used actual dosage for caffeine but not for melatonin. Three pills could be 3mg or 60+.
That’s great! I really do think 1-1.5mg is the upper limit anyone should use, although it’s still higher than free melatonin concentration in your brain it’s a much more reasonable dose in comparison.
And I think most people who don’t understand melatonin go straight for the 20mg, so we’re probably talking 60+.
It really blows my mind that in this day and age there are no regulations or at the very least warnings or guidelines regarding melatonin supplements.
The gap in FDA policy for prescription drugs vs supplements is vast. Supplements have very few regulations and restrictions that create a lot of potential issues for the uninformed consumer.
Bioavailability of oral melatonin is very poor though. IIRC it's about 10%, so that 5mg sounds about right.
That’s a great point! You’re definitely right. I’m seeing somewhere between 10-30% depending on patient population.
That being said, since we are naturally releasing .5mg, another .5mg is already double the normal concentration.
Another major point of consideration though would be formulation, as that is going to have a large effect on the half life of the dose in your system. Even if bioavailability is around physiological concentration at 5mg, the duration of the exposure being much longer than the time it takes for natural release would still have negative impact.
All this being said, definitely never a reason to go above 5mg
How is it with Quetiapin Sandoz? One pill is 25mg and i'm tired until noon, so i usually cut them in half.
Quetiapin is an antipsychotic medication, not the same as melatonin which is a naturally occurring hormone.
0x0 is correct. If it’s a prescribed medication then my comment is not relevant! I am referring to over the counter supplements