Melatonin

Melatonin is a hormone that can be taken as a medication to help treat insomnia and sleep problems.

Melatonin is a hormone that occurs naturally in the body. It helps regulate your body clock so you can sleep better. Unlike other medicines for sleep, melatonin works by signalling to your body that it is night-time and encourages your body’s own natural sleep-wake cycles to help you sleep better. Melatonin should be used alongside other ways of improving your sleep yourself.

Melatonin will usually be started by a specialist doctor, and then continued by your GP if you find it works.

The aim of using melatonin is to establish a good sleeping pattern with the lowest effective dose.

Raley melitonin causes side effects, but some serious side effects include:

• breathing difficulties

• swelling of the lips, mouth, tongue, throat, hands or feet

• severe faintness or dizziness

Contact your doctor immediately but don't stop taking melatonin, if you get any of the following symptoms:

• fainting or losing consciousness

• dizziness or vertigo (which may feel like ‘spinning’)

• feeling mixed up and confused (disorientated)

• severe chest pain or changes in heartbeat

• depression (feeling low)

• problems with your eyesight

• blood in your wee

• unusual bleeding or bruising

• a flaky pink/red rash on your skin, particularly on your elbows and knees (psoriasis)

If you are unable to contact your doctor, call NHS 111 for urgent advice.

Please do not worry about these side effects. Some people will not get any side effects at all. If you think you are getting side effects from taking melatonin, speak to your doctor or pharmacist. If you do get a side effect, please think about reporting it via the 'Yellow Card' system.

If you have taken more melatonin than the dosage recommended by the doctor who prescribed it to you, you must get medial help immediately - even if you do not feel any different.