Older people may produce less melatonin, leading to the development of insomnia. By replacing the hormone, Circadin increases blood levels of melatonin, helping them to sleep. Because Circadin tablets release melatonin slowly over a few hours, they mimic the natural production of melatonin in the body.
Who can take melatonin. Most adults aged 55 years old or over can take melatonin to help short-term sleep problems. Adults under the age of 55 and children with longer-term sleep problems can take melatonin if a specialist recommends it.
As a person ages their natural supply of the hormone melatonin decreases - making it harder to fall asleep and stay asleep all night.
Circadin is indicated as monotherapy for the short-term treatment of primary insomnia characterised by poor quality of sleep in patients who are aged 55 or over. The recommended dose is 2 mg once daily, 1-2 hours before bedtime and after food. This dosage may be continued for up to thirteen weeks.
The Bottom Line. 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.
It is typically safe for adults to take melatonin every night for short periods of time. Several factors affect whether an individual should take melatonin every day.
In general, melatonin should not be given to healthy, typically developing children under age 3, as difficulties falling and staying asleep in these children are almost always behavioral in nature.
Do not take Circadin if you are pregnant, think you may be pregnant, trying to become pregnant or breast-feeding. Ask your doctor or pharmacist for advice before taking this medicine. Circadin may cause drowsiness. If you are affected, you should not drive or operate machinery.
Circadin is a prolonged release tablet
Not all melatonin tablets are the same. Circadin is a prolonged release tablet where the melatonin is released gradually over 8-10 hours4 – this slow release means melatonin levels slowly build up over the course of the night, reproducing the body's natural night-time peak.
If a trial of melatonin is considered, experts recommend low doses (as low as 0.3 mg up to 2 mg) given 1 h before bedtime. In fact, many of the large studies involving older patients with insomnia used a 2-mg dose.
Bleeding disorders: Melatonin might make bleeding worse in people with bleeding disorders. Depression: Melatonin can make symptoms of depression worse. High blood pressure: Melatonin can raise blood pressure in people who are taking certain medications to control blood pressure. Avoid using it.
Melatonin is generally regarded as safe for seniors by physicians and pharmacists because its side effects are mild, it's not habit forming, and it does not cause withdrawal symptoms if you stop taking it suddenly. However, some of the side effects listed above may present additional challenges for older adults.
There is also potential that unscheduled melatonin could be used in children, which also poses a potential for misuse, e.g. for long term treatment or in children with behavioural/discipline issues. There are concerns around the current Schedule 4 medicine and the wider indications of its use.
The anti-aging effect of melatonin is exerted by upregulating the expression of silent information regulator 1/Sirtuin 1 (SIRT1), which reduces oxidative stress damage, decreases p53 activation, and inhibits the NF-κB pathway. Radiation can induce premature senescence through direct or indirect oxidative stress damage.
CIRCADIN has been shown to improve the sleep of most people aged over 55 years, but it may have unwanted side effects in a few people.
Circadin is used on its own for the short-term treatment of primary insomnia (persistent difficulty in getting to sleep or staying asleep, or poor quality of sleep) in patients aged 55 years and older.
Melatonin is not associated with weight gain.
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.
Melatonin levels decline gradually over the life-span and may be related to lowered sleep efficacy, very often associated with advancing age, as well as to deterioration of many circadian rhythms. Melatonin exhibits immunomodulatory properties, and a remodeling of immune system function is an integral part of aging.
There is no evidence that you can become physically dependent on the supplement, and you typically won't develop withdrawal symptoms if you stop taking it. But if you've become convinced that taking melatonin is crucial for sleep, experts say, you still may struggle to kick the habit.
Magnesium supplements are perhaps one of the most popular melatonin alternatives; for good reason. Magnesium is an essential trace mineral found in various amounts in many foods. As a dietary mineral, its key role is in enzyme reactions.
Melatonin supplements are commonly used for sleep problems. There's no evidence that melatonin is harmful to your heart, liver, or kidneys when taken as directed. But it can lower blood pressure and make bleeding more likely, especially if you take other blood pressure or blood-thinning medications.
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.
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.