Is Melatonin Safe For Your Child?

Melatonin use is on the rise  as a common sleep aid.  As a matter of fact, melatonin sales have tripled in the last 5 years with children using it more and more at alarming rates.

First, what exactly is melatonin?  Melatonin is a hormone that is secreted by your pineal gland in your brain.  It helps control your sleep and wake cycles.  You see, your body has its own internal clock that controls your natural cycle of sleeping and waking hours.  Typically your body starts producing melatonin between 9:30 and 10:30 at night and is prompted by darkness.  Therefore, for optimal sleep based on the amount of melatonin production, it is most favorable to go to bed near this time. 

Why can't kids seem to fall asleep at night? 

There are many possible reasons.  First, sugary drinks and foods and candy with dyes have been shown to act as hyper stimulants making it difficult for the body to rest at night.  Also, many

prescription drugs that provide a stimulant effects

such as for ADD, make it difficult for a body to relax and get into a restful state for sleep.  In addition, electromagnetic frequencies or EMFs have been shown to be very disruptive to our energy fields causing us to be "overcharged."  This sounds very techno, but in our world of modern technology, EMFs are constantly present in the form of computers, phones, appliances and electronics.  They are even transmitted via WiFi signals and electrical outlets and are all directly linked to melatonin depletion and sleep disorders.

 

The most worrisome trend is melatonin overuse in children.  While natural melatonin is produced in a section of the brain where it is still developing in children, adding the synthetic form can inhibit other hormone production in the brain.

Dr. Philippa Cheetham, an attending physician of Urology at Winthrop Hospital in New York says that using synthetic melatonin "Can inhibit other chemical formations in the brain such as FSH and FLH, that are related to sexual development and cause big issues with hormone development."  Her strong recommendation is for parents to stay away from melatonin.

 

Other well documented side effects include drowsiness during the day, headache, stomach aches and depression.

• Have your child go to bed and get up at the same time every day
• Avoid sugary drinks and candy and foods with dyes-especially before bed.
• Avoid TV and computer use an hour before bed or at least try to cut it down.  
• For goodness sake, make sure there are no computers, TV or phones in the bedroom.  The blue light from the phones and computers along with their EMFs inhibit natural melatonin production (yes, this goes for adults, too!).  Of course let's not fool ourselves into thinking our children cannot succumb to the temptation of electronics in their rooms as evidenced by those 1 am instagrams and tweets.   

What are your thoughts?  Do you have trouble falling asleep at night?  Let's have a conversation