This medicine is only available with a doctor's prescription. CIRCADIN is not addictive.
Circadin tablets, which contain melatonin, don't make you feel sleepy the next day, you aren't likely to become dependent on them, and there are no withdrawal symptoms when you stop taking melatonin.
Regardless of whether it truly helps with sleep or not, Dr. Ramkissoon doesn't recommend taking melatonin long-term. "Namely, because if you think you need to take melatonin every night to get to sleep, we need to understand why that's the case," explains Dr. Ramkissoon.
Unlike with many sleep medications, with melatonin you are unlikely to become dependent on it, have less response to it after repeated use or experience a hangover effect.
Melatonin is generally safe for most people, and many people won't experience major complications when taking too much. Even so, an overdose can cause unpleasant side effects. Keep your dose to no more than 1 to 3 mg per night.
The usual starting dose is one 2mg slow release tablet taken 30 minutes to 1 hour before bedtime. The dose may gradually be increased (up to a maximum of 10mg once daily) depending on how well it works and whether they have any side effects.
The scientific evidence of the long-term use of melatonin is limited, says Dr. Weiss. The current clinical consensus is that daily melatonin consumption is considered safe.
Stopping the use of melatonin
You should not get any harmful discontinuation or withdrawal effects if you stop taking melatonin. However, you may get your old symptoms back. If you are on a high dose, then the doctor may wish to reduce the dose slowly before stopping it completely.
If you've been researching the effects of melatonin, you may have stumbled across speculation that taking the supplement for too long could cause your natural melatonin production to go down. However, there's no proof that this is the case. “Your body is naturally dependent on melatonin already,” explains Dr. Horvat.
The recommended dose is one Circadin tablet (2 mg) taken daily by mouth, after food, 1-2 hours before bedtime. This dosage may be continued for up to thirteen weeks. You should swallow the tablet whole.
Circadin is a medicine that contains the active substance melatonin. It is available as white prolonged-release tablets (2 mg). 'Prolonged-release' means that melatonin is released slowly from the tablet over a few hours.
Circadin may cause drowsiness. Therefore the product should be used with caution if the effects of drowsiness are likely to be associated with a risk to safety. No clinical data exist concerning the use of Circadin in individuals with autoimmune diseases.
Do not take CIRCADIN if you are allergic to it or any of the ingredients listed at the end of this leaflet. Symptoms of an allergic reaction may include shortness of breath, wheezing or difficulty breathing, swelling of the face, lips, tongue or other parts of the body, or rash, itching or hives on the skin.
Daytime sleepiness or grogginess
This is the most common side effect people experience when taking melatonin. Because you still want to sleep, you may feel irritable or agitated. To prevent daytime sleepiness or feeling groggy, make sure you only take melatonin in the evening or in the hours before bed.
The half-life of melatonin is between 20 and 50 minutes, meaning half of the initial dosage in the body is eliminated after that amount of time. In total, melatonin stays in your system for about four to five hours.
Furthermore melatonin has been shown to have valuable effects on cardiovascular health, blood pressure, and endothelial function and it might benefit patients with heart failure.
In several clinical trials, melatonin was found to be well tolerated and not associated with serum enzyme elevations or evidence of liver injury. Despite wide scale use, melatonin has not been convincingly linked to instances of clinically apparent liver injury.
In the UK and most of Europe, it's classed as a medicine, not a health supplement and as such, requires a prescription. This is because melatonin is considered “medical by function” which means that it requires a drug licence.
For some, a melatonin supplement can lose its effectiveness after a while. If used for a long duration, it's possible to develop a dependence on it. It's a good idea to talk to your doctor if you still have trouble sleeping after taking a supplement for more than a few weeks.
Although melatonin is usually considered safer than benzodiazepines, an increased fracture risk has recently been reported with this drug, and caution should be advised for elderly patients at risk for falls.
Even though melatonin is usually safe for most people to take short-term, talk to your health care provider if you are considering taking it daily for sleep issues. Also, if sleep troubles are starting to affect your daily life, talk to your doctor about your symptoms and potential treatment options.