{"id":2350,"date":"2018-03-01T07:00:00","date_gmt":"2018-03-01T14:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.betternutrition.com\/2018\/03\/01\/how-to-take-melatonin\/"},"modified":"2022-03-17T14:14:52","modified_gmt":"2022-03-17T20:14:52","slug":"how-to-take-melatonin","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.betternutrition.com\/conditions-and-wellness\/sleep-insomnia\/how-to-take-melatonin\/","title":{"rendered":"The Best Way To Take Melatonin To Sleep Better At Night"},"content":{"rendered":"

I first heard of melatonin<\/a> in the mid-1990s after complaining to a friend that I wasn\u2019t a morning person. \u201cTake melatonin,\u201d she said, as though it were the most obvious thing in the world. At the time, a Newsweek<\/em> cover was touting the supplement as a magic sleep bullet, and prominent signs in windows of health food stores proclaimed, \u201cWe have melatonin.\u201d Excited that I might become one of those people who savors watching the rising sun, I started taking it\u2014but not for long.<\/p>\n

I did fall asleep and wake up earlier, but after a few days, I was living in a mental fog, something I\u2019d never experienced before. When I stopped taking the supplement, the fog lifted and I decided that sunrises are overrated after all.<\/p>\n

Fast-forward to my interview with Michael Grandner, Ph.D., sleep expert at the University of Arizona in Tucson, and I understand what happened in my personal melatonin experiment. With no clue about how to use it, I took too much, and I took it at the wrong time of day.<\/p>\n

How Melatonin Works<\/h2>\n

\u201cThe body has many different 24-hour or daily cycles that regulate everything from cellular metabolism to insulin function and hormone secretion,\u201d says Grandner. \u201cThe main function of melatonin, from a circadian perspective, is to signal the body that it\u2019s nighttime.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe main function of melatonin, from a circadian perspective, is to signal the body that it\u2019s nighttime.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Unlike many other sleep aids, melatonin is not a sedative. It\u2019s a hormone that our bodies produce at night. Supplements can boost our natural levels and help get our body clock on track.<\/p>\n

Best Way to Take Melatonin<\/h2>\n

\u201cMelatonin isn\u2019t like a drug, where a higher dose is more effective,\u201d says Grandner. \u201cIf anything, lower doses tend to be more effective.\u201d He recommends 0.5\u20133 mg per day, although some people may benefit from larger amounts.<\/p>\n

Timing is equally important. \u201cIf you take melatonin as your body is starting to naturally produce it, you can potentially jumpstart the system and get it to start producing melatonin a little faster,\u201d Grandner says. \u201cYour whole clock is going to shift.\u201d Melatonin generally starts to rise about two hours before you go to sleep, although the exact time varies from person to person. When taking a melatonin supplement:<\/p>\n