Has Anyone Ever Given Melatonin To A Child To Help Them Sleep.?
My brother in law gives his 7year old son 1mg of melatonin at night.
Since he started giving him melatonin he has noticed positive results, better behavior, better grades in school. He seems to a better adjusted child. Prior to taking melatonin he had trouble sleeping and was always tired. He was also diagnosed with ADHD.
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July 14 2009 05:36 pm | Cure Insomnia
July 2nd, 2009 at 5:36 pm
i use it it works your brother in law could give the 7 yr old some turkey and a baked potato…works the same way .
July 2nd, 2009 at 5:36 pm
There is no information available regarding the use of melatonin by children. Do not give any herbal/health supplement to a child without first talking to the child’s doctor.
July 2nd, 2009 at 5:36 pm
Melatonin is actually a chemical that is released by your brain during sleep to aid the body in staying asleep. It is thought that use of the herbal supplement may alter the natural release of melatonin thus creating an addiction to sleeping aids.
I would suggest consulting a physician before giving the supplement to children. It may have negative affects depending on their current health. It may also cause an unwanted addiction.
July 2nd, 2009 at 5:36 pm
I’ve given my teenagers melatonin. The funny thing is that it will help them one night and the next time nothing happens. The fact that he is getting positive results and that the child is more rested and ready to tackle the day, is awesome! I see no harm in giving it to him. If he’s on other medications, I would check with your doctor or pharmicist.
July 2nd, 2009 at 5:36 pm
Stina makes a good point. Continuous use of melatonin may suppress the body’s own natural production of the hormone, especially since it is being given to such a young child. As a result, over time the child may require more and more of the supplement because his body is producing less and less.
There is not much known about the long-term effects of melatonin in children. It’s use is primarily in older adults and people dealing with shiftwork or jet lag.
I’m happy for your brother-in-law that it seems to be helping, but at the very least, he needs to cycle the kid’s use of the supplement in order to keep the body producing as much as possible. That means one of the following routines:
- 6 days on melatonin…1 day off….or…
- 3 weeks on melatonin…1 week off…or…
- 5 months on melatonin…1 month off
He might also want to look at the kid’s overall diet. There are studies that indicate ADHD and behavior disorders can be significantly controlled by a healthy diet, limiting sugars and processed foods, and the use of vitamin supplements
July 2nd, 2009 at 5:36 pm
Who knows what kind of side effects it will have on his rapidly developing brain ,down the line…
*sigh*
July 2nd, 2009 at 5:36 pm
If your brother-in-law is giving this kind of brain altering drug without a doctors advice then he is guilty of child abuse. Mind altering drugs are not something to play around with by someone who is not medically or psychologically trained (and I don’t mean someone who has taken a couple of psych courses or has worked in a hospital as a bedpan jockey.)
July 2nd, 2009 at 5:36 pm
Hmmm. I used to take it. It shouldn’t hurt him at all. My only concern would be that he becomes a bit dependent on that hormone and will not make enough of his own. It’s certainly better than Ritalin!
August 20th, 2009 at 8:44 am
My children are on Melatonin prescribed by their peadatrician, my son is 9 and my daughter is 2, neither will go to sleep before midnight, no matter what I do to try and make them sleep. I was sitting on the script for 8 months before deciding to give it to my kids, and finally I relented. They have been on it for 2 weeks now, and some nights my son will come to me at 8.30pm, say he is tired and heads off to bed… so I don’t give it to him everynight and I have not noticed side effects in him, but my daughter on the other hand, although it helps her to fall asleep very quick, she has not been eating since we started on it, she will snack on fruit, but she will not eat meals, so I am not sure if it is a side effect, or if it is because she is getting over a virus, but either way, she is coming off of it. I’m with other ppl on here, only give it to kids when needed, but once their body gets into routine, get them off of it… my son has been diagnosed as dyslexic and ora-mouth dyspraxia, and although I have noticed improvement with his school work, it does not mean I will keep him on melatonin for that reason.
September 1st, 2009 at 8:34 am
my child is 7 and is on 4mg a night,she sleeps well nw and has no side effects,but im going to give her some breaks nw as i dnt want to continually give it her every night.shes is due 4 a review to c how things are going an is in the process of getting assesed to c if she had adhd or some thing else.
April 12th, 2010 at 10:45 pm
People are concerned about long term effects of melatonin – which they should be with anything newer and not studied well.
But, I suspect the effects long term sleep deprivation on a developing brain is also very risky to the long term well being of a child.
If the dr prescribes melatonin, maybe use with discretion as people on this web site has suggested.
thanks for the sharing your experiances with it.