Schizophrenia, a mental disorder characterized by inability to separate reality from thought disturbances such as hallucinations, affects around 1 percent of people worldwide, according to the National Institutes of Health. Although both men and women can have schizophrenia, women tend to have milder cases. Melatonin, a hormone secreted by the pineal gland in the brain, may have several benefits in treating people with schizophrenia. Do not take melatonin supplements or stop other medicines without first discussing it with your medical practitioner.
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Normally, melatonin regulates the body's internal clock, which tells you when to wake up and when to sleep. Amounts of melatonin vary, with more melatonin produced at night or when it's dark, and less produced during the day or when you're exposed to bright light. In some cases, people with schizophrenia produce less melatonin than other people.
Insomnia
One of the many distressing features of schizophrenia is insomnia. Since people with schizophrenia often produce less melatonin and since low levels of melatonin affect sleep, it seems logical that melatonin supplements might help people with schizophrenia sleep better. A study conducted by researchers from the University of Tel Aviv and published in the May 2000 issues of "The Journal of Clinical Psychology" compared a 2 mg daily dose of melatonin with a placebo. Of the 19 patients, 83.5 percent of the melatonin group had improved sleep, compared to 78.2 percent of those who took a placebo, a difference considered clinically significant.
Tardive Dyskinesia
Tardive dyskinesia commonly occurs as a side effect of long-term psychiatric medication use. As many as 50 percent of patients hospitalized with chronic schizophrenia develop the disorder, according to pharmacist David F. McAuley. Symptoms include involuntary, abnormal movements such as grimacing, tongue thrusting or chewing motions. Some, but not all, studies have found melatonin helpful for treating tardive dyskinesia. A study conducted by the Abarbanel Mental Health Center in Israel and reported in the November 2001 "Archives of General Psychiatry" found a decrease in symptoms in patients treated with melatonin for six weeks.
Considerations
Researchers do not claim that melatonin will treat schizophrenia, but rather that it may help relieve some of the more troublesome side effects of the disease. Melatonin can also have significant side effects, including vivid dreams or nightmares, sleepiness during the day, irritability or headache. Melatonin could also worsen depression in some people; ask your medical practitioner before taking this drug if you suffer from depression. Melatonin may also reduce the effectiveness of anti-depressant medications, the University of Maryland Medical Center reports.
References
- University of Maryland Medical Center: Melatonin; Dec. 8, 2009
- "Journal of Clinical Psychiatry"; Melatonin Improves Sleep Quality of Patients with Chronic Schizophrenia; E. Shamir; May 2006
- "Archives of General Psychiatry"; Melatonin Treatment for Tardive Dyskinesia; E. Shamir; November 2001
- National Institutes of Health: Schizophrenia; Feb. 7, 2010
- Global RPh: Melatonin and Its Use in the Treatment of Tardive Dyskinesia; David McAuley, Pharm.D.; 2005
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