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In recent years, melatonin has attracted much interest not only for its ability to induce and maintain sleep, but also for its influence on the hormonal, immune, and nervous systems.
Unfortunately, in some cases we see how supplementation with pure melatonin without the addition of dry extracts can be ineffective, although scientific literature continues to accumulate evidence of the usefulness of melatonin supplementation in improving sleep quality even at doses lower than 1 mg.
Melatonin in some sleep disorders
Numerous studies highlight the effectiveness of melatonin supplementation in some sleep disorders, in particular theinsomnia, but sometimes it happens that some people do not get the desired results because they mentally associate the effect of melatonin with the immediate effect of a sleeping pill and take it immediately before going to bed, while in reality the maximum plasma levels are reached at least after one hour of taking it.
How long does melatonin take to work?
The metabolism of melatonin is purely individual and in some cases the hypnotic effect is also achieved after a month of continuous administrationFor this reason, combining melatonin with valerian, hawthorn, and passionflower improves its speed of action.
This result is also thanks to the anxiolytic effect, neurosedative and slightly cardiosedative characteristic of dry extracts which reduces the “timing” of intake by bringing the administration closer to bedtime and making it more effective than the use of pure melatonin.
Since the 1990s, studies on melatonin have evolved with regard to its effectiveness in insomnia, but also on its presumed influence on delaying aging and as an anti-tumor agent, the latter unfortunately with results too conflicting to be considered certain.
Read also: How to manage sleep problems
Melatonin is good for your mood
In contrast to this, the hypnotic and sleep-inducing effect positive effect on mood, which depend on a better sleep quality and from the binding of melatonin with its precursor, 5-hydroxytryptamine or serotonin, its synthesis intermediate at the level of the pineal gland, have given concrete results.
The 5-hydroxytriprophan (5-HTP) derived from African plant Griffonia simplicifolia, in addition to being very useful in modulating nervous hunger, it can act in synergy with melatonin, helping to improve the mood of those who suffer from mild seasonal disorders through an increase in serum serotonin levels and the interaction with the serotonin receptor through mechanisms not yet known.
