The popularity of melatonin, a supplement used by many as a sleep aid, is quickly growing. The synthetic hormone is often taken to help combat insomnia, trouble falling asleep due to anxiety, and jet lag due to travel or shift work. In 2012, more than 3 million people in the United States reported taking melatonin and in 2019 the global market for the supplement was estimated somewhere around $1 billion annually.
More and more parents and caregivers are giving melatonin to their children. Melatonin is one of the most popular natural products given to children, second only to fish oil. We often equate "natural" with "safe," but just because something is naturally occurring doesn’t mean it can’t have any adverse effects.
As the popularity of melatonin grows, so do the concerns over whether or not we should be relying on it so much, especially when it comes to our kids.
Is melatonin effective?
The anecdotal evidence for melatonin as an effective sleep aid is strong. Ask any mom group and you’ll find a significant fraction who swear by it, both for themselves and for their kids.
But evidence at the clinical level is so far less conclusive. For example, the authors of one literature-based review found that taking melatonin helped shift workers sleep longer during the day by an average of 24 minutes. But they also found those taking a placebo drug saw similar benefits.
The anecdotal evidence for melatonin as an effective sleep aid is strong, but so far, the clinical evidence is less conclusive.
In another meta-analysis that combined 19 studies involving over 1,600 participants, the authors found a statistically significant result that taking melatonin increased a person’s total sleep time … but for a total of just 8 minutes.
Both the American Academy of Sleep Medicine and the American College of Physicians note that there is not enough evidence to recommend the use of melatonin to address chronic insomnia and instead suggest cognitive behavioral therapy. However, hesitancy to recommend melatonin use appears to center less on concerns over efficacy and more on concerns over safety.
Tidak ada komentar:
Posting Komentar