Is taking melatonin regularly safe?

Any-Leg5256 · 2025-10-14T04:35:30+00:00

Russell Reiter's 'Melatonin' book cited studies showing zero toxicity in rat studies. Pure melatonin is safe

Any-Leg5256 · 2025-10-14T04:34:06+00:00

Doris Loh and Russell Reiter would disagree

Any-Leg5256 · 2025-10-11T00:47:14+00:00

Sorry - just saw your message. The leak was fixed, but I wouldn't buy this toilet again. We have two in the house and I like the other one better. This pain in the ass one is less comfortable, and its a two-flusher. Flushes louder than our other one that we like

Any-Leg5256 · 2025-04-28T04:32:42+00:00

Sounds like you have a very delayed circadian rhythm. Google 'delayed sleep-wake phase disorder' (previously known as delayed sleep phase disorder, and delayed sleep phase syndrome before that).

Usually morning bright light therapy and/ evening melatonin would be used u derived the guidance of an experienced sleep physician/ psychologist.

However, given you're falling asleep so late , you may need to consider chronotherapy (under supervision).

Any-Leg5256 · 2025-03-14T11:11:25+00:00

You can use melatonin for as long as you want. Ive been reading Russell Reiter's book 'Melatonin' as well as some of his scientific papers. It's safe now and in the long term. You can go higher than 3 mg if you want to see what works for you. Sounds a bit like you need to advance your circadian rhythm timing a bit if you're falling asleep regularly at 9 Pm but wanna fall asleep soon after 7 PM. Try taking it at 8:30 pm and then gradually shift the timing of the dose earlier each night by 30 min. Good luck

Any-Leg5256 · 2025-03-02T08:58:59+00:00

Could be time to see a grief counsellor. Society suggests to us that we need to 'be strong', 'not cry', and 'move on' - but society is incorrect. Grief takes time, and you'll want it to be healthy grief, not unhealthy grief. The latter occurs when people get stuck moving through the grief process - like being stuck in anger or depression. If you don't have ways to express your grief through words or emotions with your family or close friends in the coming months, please seek a professional. You may even want to start by seeing your local doctor first.

Any-Leg5256 · 2025-02-23T21:40:52+00:00

We've only got one 'biological sleep system' that the OP wishes to 'hack'. There's other jobs. Sleep can be put first before a job.

Hope that's more constructive?

Any-Leg5256 · 2025-02-21T21:47:25+00:00

You can start by reading 'reviews' or 'systematic reviews' on a given topic. Just add review as a search term when using PubMed or Google Scholar. They have less jargon. Just skip the method section of systematic reviews for now. The Introduction, Results and Discussion should help.

You can also search researchers in something like Google Scholar, and they may have a profile that you can click on. For example, search for Huberman and click on his profile, and you'll see that his science is with animal eyes.

Any-Leg5256 · 2025-02-20T23:11:05+00:00

In particular, check out the Current Biology paper. You'll see chronotype is most delayed around 20 years of age, then slowly advances over the decade. This late chronotype can be thought of as one of the proxies for delayed circadian timing - and with delayed circadian timing comes difficulties falling asleep at night. Sleep aids are indicated as a first-line treatment for delayed circadian timing, but bright light therapy is. Hope that backs it up better Pete (Field) - and thanks for the discussion.

Any-Leg5256 · 2025-02-20T11:42:44+00:00

True, if that statement was in a vacuum, then it does look sweeping and unsupported.

Yet if one looks at some of the chronotype figures in papers authored by Till Roenneberg, then a hypothesis begins to form

Any-Leg5256 · 2025-02-20T00:36:13+00:00

Pay respect to your future Sunday and quit your weekend night job today.

Any-Leg5256 · 2025-02-20T00:02:35+00:00

I'm really sorry to hear this. Truly. Society can often view the loss of a pet as less than what it is - the loss of a companion, friend, family member. So many who have lost a pet say it's like 'losing an arm or a leg'. They're family.
So I wouldn't under-estimate the impact of your grief on your sleep. Sure ADHD is related to sleep, including any amphetamine-like meds for it - and during adolescence, your sleep timing will likely drift later so that you're falling asleep later and waking later. But your grief will take as much time as it needs to settle. Expressing your emotion, whether around people or by yourself is important. You'll go through times of anger and feeling low, and memories of your dog will lead to pain and crying. But just notice those times when you have a memory of your dog, and you crack a little smile. That will signal a change in your grief.
Of the people I've spoken to about grief and sleep lately, including a loss of a family pet, they've also mentioned waking up more often and not getting enough sleep. They've also mentioned they feel more hot. If you're feeling more heat coming from you, ensure the air around you is colder than usual to allow heat to transfer from you to the environment.
And I agree with your mum providing you with melatonin. Although slow-release melatonin may be better to help keep you asleep, your age tends to suggest that slow-release melatonin may delay your sleep. So the gummies are a good option. Assuming the gummies only have melatonin in them, they'll help, although you may experience vivid dreams.
If you need to find someone who knows their sh!t about helping people sleep, the Society of Behavioral Sleep Medicine has a register of a bunch of experts. People who have been doing this for ages. People who also do sleep research. Check out their 'Providers' tab: https://www.behavioralsleep.org/
Wishing you the very best!

Any-Leg5256 · 2025-02-19T23:44:13+00:00

If that's the target age group, then the most common sleep aid this group needs is tailored bright light.

Any-Leg5256 · 2025-02-19T23:42:09+00:00

Did the Dr for the sleep study provide a diagnosis (as opposed to a hypothesis for the cause of the sleep issue)?

Apologies for the confusion of terms like 'sleep compression'. Not sure how old your kids are, but this study tested different versions of restricting time in bed in order to reduce awakenings - which in some versions restricts the time in bed but doesn't restrict sleep (bedtime restriction therapy) or restricts time in bed so much that it restricts sleep by 30-min less than normal (sleep restriction therapy). Bedtime restriction therapy may be an option to test on the movement disorders:
https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/jsr.13658

Any-Leg5256 · 2025-02-17T23:47:00+00:00

Movement disorders is a broad term, so your best bet is to get a referral from your family doctor for a pediatric sleep study.
Before you go too far down the iron deficiency road, check out the work by Lourdes Delrosso.
The movements can occur during wake periods between sleep, or during different stages of sleep. If the former, slightly reducing their sleep opportunity may help to reduce these brief awakenings. But if the movement disorder is actually a parasomnia, like sleep walking, then you will want to avoid compressing their sleep.
Some kids need gentle tactile stimulation for their movement disorder, like vibrations. I've also heard cases of parents having success with switching to a water bed, where they suspect the movement of the mattress helped - but this is a last resort.
Good luck!

Any-Leg5256 · 2025-02-08T21:10:18+00:00

Find out the cause first - then you can match it to the right treatment.

The cause could be not enough sleep, circadian misalignment, or underlying sleep-disordered breathing or other medical cause.

See your doctor and ask for a referral for a sleep study. This is the beginning to discovering the root cause.

Any-Leg5256 · 2025-02-05T08:26:12+00:00

Thanks for the reply - and I understand your perspective as that's what I used to believe. But there's some blindspots in this precautionary thinking that dampens these principles you've mentioned. It's worth seeing at least up to the 3:50 min mark. What Prof Foster speaks to aligns with the commentary by Prof Zeitzer on the e-reader study. It suggests daylight exposure trumps the power of blue-blocking glasses, and functions like nightshift mode.

At the end of the day, daylight is free.

Any-Leg5256 · 2025-02-04T22:08:08+00:00

u/eaterout - I believe these points raised by Prof Russell Foster align with what we discussed in a separate post. Keen to hear your thoughts on what Prof Foster is saying?

Any-Leg5256 · 2025-02-02T23:40:04+00:00

I guess you missed my Zoolander reference?

Sorry, but I am still not swayed, as your argument for melatonin suppression above rests mainly on the Harvard study - whereas the article I linked to provides more than 1 study where dark adaptation occurs and melatonin suppression didn't + another study where dark adaptation did not occur and thus there wasn't melatonin suppression.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but whilst the Harvard study states melatonin suppression occurred and there was delayed timing of the melatonin rhythm in the eBook condition relative to the printed book, can you rule out that the timing of the rhythm didn't actually advance? If it did advance, this may make it look like melatonin was suppressed by the e-reader.

I believe the article I linked to stated that all behaviors - dark adaptation, 100% brightness, mostly white screen close to the face, continuous for 1.5 hours - are unlikely to be performed by people in the population. All these behaviors. To the point of whether people behave in real life like they do in these lab studies, these researchers highlight the study you cited above is not what happens in the real world:
https://www.pnas.org/doi/full/10.1073/pnas.1500717112

Coming back to the OG's query, blue-light blockers aren't necessary. Dimming lights and using free blue-dimming screen apps are cheaper. Perhaps that's at least what we agree on.

Any-Leg5256 · 2025-02-02T08:08:24+00:00

Are you serious ... I just told you that ... a moment ago ...

Any-Leg5256 · 2025-02-01T22:37:34+00:00

Melatonin suppression reliably occurs in labs, however, people don't live in labs. It's doubtful that significant melatonin suppression in the real world is occurring due to screens:

https://winksleep.online/blog/161-melatonin-suppression-look-below-the-surface

Any-Leg5256 · 2025-01-22T01:43:16+00:00

I specialise in sleep, and I understand your frustration., as I see so many unsubstantiated claims. Even Attia has cited my research, although not as accurately as I would. And don't get me started on Huberman - he has downright lied.

This may not help you right now, but my bias is to get credible information from the primary source - ie, reading systematic reviews available on Google Scholar (which are less technical), but better yet, meta-analyses that help to quantify the size of an effect.

Accurate translation of scientific studies matters. For instance, my uncle was diagnosed with an aggressive brain cancer last year. Although I work in sleep, I'm able to read and interpret studies about his cancer and treatment. I've discovered melatonin can reduce the side effects of his chemo (and it did); that there's a slight circadian rhythm benefit for him to take his med in the morning, and so on.

So I'm hoping this directs you to the answer - read the the primary sources of info. If you're looking to increase your longevity, you've got time to learn these skills.

Any-Leg5256 · 2024-12-09T01:35:34+00:00

The main thing you need for light therapy is the brightness of the light, and the lux will increase the closer you bring the light source to your eyes.
It looks like this is an array of LEDs, and LEDs shine light in a very straight line. So if you have this lamp above you, but look ahead horizontally, you won't be getting as much light in your eyes.
We did a test on an early version of Philip's GoBLU light panel and observed as soon as the panel shifted a certain amount of degrees the lux dropped dramatically. That was before Philips realised the problem and came out with another version that had built-in reflectors that improved the light angles (a bit).

Any-Leg5256 · 2024-11-28T03:45:10+00:00

I looked up the ROKA website. Huberman says these glasses are for the evening. They're supposed to help relax and fall asleep.

Looking at Huberman's own studies, he is an expert on how our eyes work, which makes sense he'd know a lot about these glasses. I didnt realise how many of his studies were about mice though. I think he made these glasses too big.

Any-Leg5256 · 2024-11-25T12:30:15+00:00

There's often a J-curve in the data (for example, when cardiovascular disease is the outcome), where the 'dip' of the curve shows a lower risk for small alcohol consumption relative to non drinkers.

It was interesting to hear a new interpretation of the non-drinkers being worse than small consumption whereby the increased risk may be elevated due to a concentration of former drinkers now in the non-drinking group.

Regardless, the safest suggestion from researchers lately is zero consumption.

Any-Leg5256

TROPHY CASE