Melatonin Use Is Increasing Among Children In The U.S., With Nearly 20% Of Kids Under The Age Of 14 Taking It Before Bedtime
According to a recent study published in JAMA Pediatrics, children under the age of 14 are increasingly using melatonin before bedtime, even though it’s not strictly regulated by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
Melatonin, a hormone created by the brain’s pineal gland, plays a crucial role in managing circadian rhythm, or the 24-hour internal clock that dictates when we go to sleep and when we wake up. So, in recent years, Americans have increasingly turned to melatonin supplements as a way to remedy insomnia.
In numerous other nations, including the United Kingdom, melatonin is actually only accessible after obtaining a prescription. However, melatonin is only categorized as a dietary supplement in the United States, which means it’s subject to different regulations compared to standard foods and drugs.
The FDA doesn’t pre-approve supplements for safety, efficacy, or labeling accuracy prior to hitting the market. Rather, it’s the responsibility of the supplement manufacturers to ensure their products are correctly labeled and safe.
So, the FDA hasn’t approved any sleep-inducing drugs for children under the age of 18. Yet, melatonin use is still rising.
To figure out just how common melatonin use has become among children, researchers first surveyed close to 1,000 U.S. parents in the first six months of 2023, according to the University of Colorado Boulder.
The survey revealed that 18.5% of children between the ages of 5 and 9 had taken melatonin within the last 30 days. Then, this figure increased to 19.4% for children ages 10 to 13. Additionally, around 6% of preschoolers between 1 and 4 years old had used melatonin supplements in the past month.
This is a notable increase from 2017 to 2018, when only approximately 1.3% of parents reported their children taking melatonin.
There is still a lack of data on the long-term effects that melatonin could have on children, according to Cora Collette Breuner, a University of Washington pediatrician.
Konstantin Yuganov – stock.adobe.com – illustrative purposes only, not the actual child
“I counsel patients and families about this on a daily basis, and my colleagues, that when we don’t know something in terms of what the long-term effect is, especially on a growing brain and growing body, then we shouldn’t use it without more data,” Breuner said.
Earlier studies have shown that the actual melatonin content in gummy supplements often differs from what is indicated on their labels. A study published in April, for instance, found that 22 out of 25 different melatonin gummy products actually had incorrect labeling. One product even contained as much as 347% more melatonin than stated, while another product had no detectable amount of melatonin whatsoever.
According to certain sources, like the Boston Children’s Hospital, melatonin can be helpful for children who encounter trouble getting to bed as long as it’s used alongside other interventions to directly address sleep issues. For instance, maintaining a consistent bedtime routine and limiting screen time.
However, whether or not melatonin should be used in kids remains a topic of debate among other experts. And now, the study’s authors hope that their findings will at least pave the way for further research.
“We hope this paper raises awareness for parents and clinicians and sounds the alarm for the scientific community. We are not saying that melatonin is necessarily harmful to children. But more research needs to be done before we can state with confidence that it is safe for kids to be taking long-term,” concluded Lauren Hartstein, the study’s lead author.
To read the study’s complete findings, visit the link here.
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