If you supplement, this is the 0.5 mg dose the protocol calls for, the physiological range that is hard to find at retail where 3-10 mg is the default.
Check price · AmazonThe physiological dose is 0.3-1 mg, not the 5-10 mg sold at retail. Timing matters more than amount. The cited protocol.
Questions logged on this protocol
How much melatonin should I take?
For sleep onset, 0.3-1 mg taken 30-60 minutes before bed is the evidence-supported range. Zhdanova et al. 2001 (J Clin Endocrinol Metab) showed that 0.3 mg restored sleep efficiency in older adults with insomnia as well as or better than 3 mg, while only the 0.3 mg dose kept nighttime melatonin in the normal physiological range. The retail default of 3-10 mg exceeds the physiological range by roughly 10-30x and is not more effective for sleep onset. Start at the lowest dose that works; most people never need more than 1 mg.
Is 5 mg or 10 mg too much?
For the purpose of falling asleep, almost certainly yes. The meta-analysis by Brzezinski et al. 2005 (Sleep Med Rev) found melatonin reduced sleep-onset latency by about 4 minutes and increased sleep efficiency modestly, with no clear dose-response advantage for higher amounts. 5-10 mg drives blood melatonin to 10-100x the natural nocturnal peak and keeps it elevated into the morning, which is what produces next-day grogginess. Higher doses add sedation, not phase-shifting power. [VERIFY: receptor downregulation from chronic high doses is biologically plausible and discussed in reviews, but human long-term receptor data are limited.]
When should I take melatonin?
Timing depends on the goal. For sleep onset, 30-60 minutes before target bedtime. For shifting your clock earlier (phase advance), the melatonin phase response curve from Burgess et al. 2010 (J Physiol) shows the largest advances come from low-dose melatonin taken in the late afternoon or early evening, roughly 5-6 hours before habitual sleep onset, which falls near dim light melatonin onset (DLMO, about 2-3 hours before habitual sleep). Taking it too late, after habitual sleep onset, lands on the delay portion of the curve and pushes your clock the wrong way.
Does melatonin help jet lag, and at what timing?
Yes, especially eastbound. Herxheimer & Petrie 2002 (Cochrane Database) reviewed 10 trials and found melatonin consistently reduced jet lag across 5 or more time zones, most clearly for eastward travel. Effective doses were 0.5-5 mg, with 0.5 mg about as effective as 5 mg, taken close to target bedtime at the destination (around 22:00-00:00 local). The review noted that taking it at the wrong destination time can actually worsen adaptation, which is consistent with the phase response curve: dose timing, not dose size, is the lever.
Is melatonin safe long-term, and what are the side effects?
Short-term use is generally well tolerated; the evidence review by Auld et al. 2017 (Sleep Med Rev) reported melatonin had a favorable safety profile in the trials assessed, with effects on sleep that were statistically significant but modest. Reported side effects include next-day grogginess (dose-dependent and more common above 1 mg), headache, and vivid dreams. Robust long-term human safety data beyond a few months are limited, and OTC products are not tightly regulated, so actual content can vary from the label. Anyone pregnant, on anticoagulants or immunosuppressants, or considering daily use beyond a few weeks should discuss it with a clinician. [VERIFY: long-term (>6 month) controlled safety data remain sparse.]
Does melatonin actually make you fall asleep faster?
A little, and less than most people expect. Brzezinski et al. 2005 found a mean reduction in sleep-onset latency of roughly 4 minutes versus placebo across studies; later analyses put the effect somewhat larger in primary insomnia but still modest (on the order of 7-12 minutes). Melatonin is a circadian timing signal, not a sedative-hypnotic: it tells the clock it is night rather than forcing sleep the way a sleeping pill does. Its strongest, most reliable use is correcting timing (delayed phase, jet lag, shift work), not adding minutes for an otherwise normal sleeper.
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