Melatonin is a hormone found naturally in the body. Melatonin used as medicine is generally made artificially in a lab. It is most frequently readily available in pill form, but melatonin is also available in types that can be placed in the cheek or under the tongue. This enables the melatonin to be taken in straight into the body.
Before we discuss how Melatonin can be dangerous to your health let’s find out general information of the medicine.
What Is Melatonin Used For?
People use melatonin to adjust the body’s internal clock. It is used for jet lag, for changing sleep-wake cycles in people whose daily work schedule changes (shift-work disorder), and for assisting blind people establish a day and night cycle.
Melatonin is likewise used for the failure to fall asleep (insomnia); delayed sleep phase syndrome (DSPS); rapid eye movement sleep behavior disorder (RBD); insomnia related to attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder (ADHD); insomnia due to particular hypertension medications called beta-blockers; and sleep problems in children with developmental disorders consisting of autism, spastic paralysis, and intellectual impairments. It is also used as a sleep help after discontinuing using benzodiazepine drugs and to decrease the side effects of stopping cigarette smoking.
Some people use melatonin for Alzheimer’s disease or amnesia (dementia), bipolar disorder, a lung disease called chronic obstructive lung disease (COPD), sleeping disorders brought on by beta-blocker drugs, endometriosis, calling in the ears, depression or seasonal depression (SAD), moderate psychological problems, nonalcoholic liver disease, fatigue syndrome (CFS), fibromyalgia, uneasy leg syndrome, an inflammatory disease called sarcoidosis, schizophrenia, migraine and other headaches, age-related vision loss, benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH), irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), bone loss (osteoporosis), a movement disorder called tardive dyskinesia (TD), acid reflux disease, Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori), workout performance, infertility, epilepsy, aging, for menopause, metabolic syndrome, for recovery after surgery, agitation caused by anesthesia, stress, uncontrolled motion disorder (tardive dyskinesia), changes in heart rate when you move from putting down to sitting up (postural tachycardia syndrome), delirium, inability to control urination, jaw pain, inflammatory bowel disease (ulcerative colitis), and for contraception.
Other uses consist of breast cancer, brain cancer, lung cancer, prostate cancer, head cancer, neck cancer, and gastrointestinal cancer. Melatonin is also used for a few of the side effects of cancer treatment (chemotherapy) consisting of weight-loss, nerve pain, weakness, and a reduced variety of clot-forming cells (thrombocytopenia).
It is likewise used to soothe people prior to they are offered anesthesia for surgery.
The forms of melatonin that can be taken in through the cheek or under the tongue are used for insomnia, shift-work disorder, and to relax people before receiving anesthesia for surgery.
Sometimes people apply melatonin to the skin to protect against sunburn.
Melatonin may likewise be injected into the muscle to assist treat cancer.
How Does Melatonin Work?
Melatonin’s primary job in the body is to manage night and day cycles or sleep-wake cycles. Darkness causes the body to produce more melatonin, which signals the body to get ready for sleep. Light reductions melatonin production and signifies the body to get ready for being awake. Some people who have trouble sleeping have low levels of melatonin. It is believed that including melatonin from supplements may help them sleep.
Is Melatonin Dangerous for You?
Melatonin is likely safe for the majority of adults when taken by mouth or injected into the body in the short-term, or when applied to the skin.
Melatonin is perhaps safe when used by mouth properly, long-lasting. Melatonin has actually been used safely for as much as 2 years in some people. Nevertheless, it can cause some side effects consisting of headache, short-term sensations of depression, daytime drowsiness, dizziness, stomach cramps, and irritability. Do not own or use machinery for four to 5 hours after taking melatonin.
Special preventative measures & cautions:
Pregnancy and breast-feeding: melatonin is possibly hazardous when taken by mouth or injected into the body during pregnancy. Do not use it. Melatonin might also disrupt ovulation, making it harder to become pregnant.
Not enough is known about the safety of using melatonin when breast-feeding. It is best not to use it.
Children: melatonin is potentially safe when taken by mouth as a single dose. It is possibly hazardous when taken by mouth or injected into the body in multiple dosages in the short-term. Since of its results on other hormones, melatonin may hinder advancement during adolescence.
Bleeding conditions: melatonin may make bleeding worse in people with bleeding disorders.
Depression: melatonin can make symptoms of depression even worse.
Diabetes: melatonin might increase blood sugar in people with diabetes. Monitor your blood sugar thoroughly, if you have diabetes and take melatonin.
High blood pressure: melatonin can raise blood pressure in people who are taking certain medications to manage blood pressure. Prevent using it.
Seizure disorders: using melatonin might increase the risk of having a seizure.
Transplant receivers: melatonin can increase immune function and might hinder immunosuppressive therapy used by people receiving transplants.
