Melatonin for Sleep?

Countless Americans report issues with sleep. Either they have difficulty falling asleep, staying asleep or just don't get enough sleep!  Melatonin has become a popular over the counter supplement to help with sleep issues.Melatonin is a hormone produced by the pineal gland in the body in response to darkness. It is involved in regulating circadian rhythm and the sleep wake cycle. Circadian rhythms affect most living things and are natural physical and mental processes  that follow a 24 hour cycle in response to light and darkness.Melatonin starts to rise in the evening to increase drowsiness, peaks in the middle of the night and lowers, in the morning to allow for wakefulness. Therefore, the amount of light you are exposed to affects your melatonin production, which is why bright lights before bed and in the middle of the night affect your sleep.Melatonin supplement use has increased dramatically over the last few years. People take melatonin to combat jet lag, improve insomnia, and aid shift worker sleep cycles. It is also used for people who have sleep disorders, such as delayed sleep phase disorder. The supplements can be synthetic or they can be derived from microbes. They come in pills, gummies and liquids in various dosages. A dose of 3-5 mg is recommended, but many supplements far exceed this dosage, and the side effects of higher dosages has not been well researched. Additionally, melatonin is meant to be take for only a short period of time, and many consumers take melatonin indefinitely, and there is not enough research on long-term use to see if it is safe.