After thousands of children ended up in U.S. emergency rooms after accidentally ingesting melatonin, a leading supplement industry group has issued new safety guidelines, which include asking manufacturers of the popular sleep aid to use child-deterrent packaging. Melatonin is generally considered safe for use by adults, but recent research has raised concerns that it may be overused by children. And the increase in emergency room visits suggests that children are taking it accidentally or without parental guidance, sometimes leading to melatonin poisoning. Here’s what you need to know about melatonin safety and the new guidelines.
What is melatonin?
Melatonin is a hormone that the human body naturally produces to help maintain the sleep-wake cycle, or circadian rhythms, according to Mayo clinic. Our bodies produce melatonin in response to darkness, helping us fall asleep at night. Melatonin levels decrease when light starts to come out, helping us wake up. Night light – from indoor lighting, city light pollution or screens – reduces the normal rise in melatonin at night, potentially disrupting sleep, National Institute of Health studies suggest.
A synthetic version of the hormone can also be produced in laboratories and taken as a capsule or gummy supplement and may help people with certain conditions fall asleep more easily. It is considered safe to take in the short term at NIHbut supplements are not regulated by the Food and Drug AdministrationThat’s why the agency warns you to be careful when purchasing them.
Can you overdose on melatonin?
It is extremely unlikely that there will be a life-threatening overdose when taking melatonin, but you may take enough to feel sick, according to the Sleep Foundation. Symptoms include:
What are the signs of melatonin overdose in children?
Children are particularly at risk of taking too much melatonin. Because the FDA does not regulate supplements, there is no recommended dose of melatonin for adults or children, but children—especially younger ones—are less likely to know or read how much is too much. Dosage can also be unpredictable. “Over-the-counter melatonin supplements, when studied, have shown varying dosage amounts in the same bottle, creating an overdose situation for many,” Dr Nilong Vyas, a pediatrician and sleep coach in private practice, told Yahoo Life. Overdose symptoms in children are similar to those in adults and may include:
-
Stomachache
-
Vomiting
-
Diarrhea
-
Tiredness
“Children who have taken a very high dose of melatonin may have difficulty waking up in the morning and remain groggy throughout the day,” says Vyas. “Most importantly, it affects the body’s natural negative feedback cycle, which helps regulate normal melatonin production. “
In extreme cases, taking too much melatonin can land children in the emergency room. And it’s not particularly rare. An estimated 10,930 children under age 5 were treated in U.S. emergency rooms for accidental melatonin ingestion between 2019 and 2022, according to a recent CDC report. And the number of emergency room visits for melatonin intake among infants and children increased 420% between 2009 and 2020. Most children got melatonin packaged in bottles, suggesting they were left open or were easy for a young child. Open.
Most children did not need to be hospitalized, but experts remain concerned about the risks of children becoming ill from consuming too much melatonin. In some cases, the supplements also contained more melatonin than indicated on the labels. In April 2023 to study, researchers found that one over-the-counter brand of melatonin gummies had more than four times as much melatonin as its label said. Several contained melatonin and CBD, but they had much more CBD than the labels suggested.
Should children take melatonin?
The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) states that melatonin can help get children into a new sleep routine and may be helpful for some children, such as those on the autism spectrum or with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). , but cautions parents to speak to their child’s pediatrician first.
It is important to note that there are possible risks. According to a previous CDC Report: “Pediatric melatonin ingestions reported to U.S. poison control centers, including those requiring hospitalization and those with more serious outcomes, have increased over the past decade.” The concern stems more broadly from the extremely widespread use of melatonin in children and the lack of oversight over supplement ingredients. A study published earlier this year in JAMA Pediatrics found that nearly 1 in 5 school-age children and preteens take melatoninincluding more than 18% of children between 5 and 9 years old.
“The quick fix is to give your child a sleeping pill,” Dr. Danelle Fisher, a pediatrician and chief of pediatrics at Providence Saint John’s Health Center in Santa Monica, California, previously told Yahoo Life.” Do most children need this? No, they need sleep hygiene, and that’s hard. It’s much easier to take a pill.”
What do the new guidelines say?
After the latest CDC report was released, the supplement trade organization, the Responsible Nutrition Council (CRN), asked melatonin manufacturers to limit the amount of the synthetic hormone in their products. The guidelines ask manufacturers to stop loading their products with many times more melatonin than the 8 mg of melatonin most adults take or the 1 to 3 mg most adults take. NIH says it is often used for children.
The guidelines also ask melatonin manufacturers to make it difficult for children to enter containers of their products, in the hopes that this will help curb accidental ingestions. Finally, CRN stated that supplement manufacturers need to add labels to their packaging to warn consumers that melatonin can cause drowsiness and should not be taken with alcohol.
Members of the organization must comply within 18 months, or risk losing their membership. However, there is no legal requirement since the FDA does not oversee supplements. Still, Vyas considers it a victory. “Creating guidelines on the standardization of labeling, manufacturing and packaging is a significant first step in preventing long-term consequences,” she says.
