Meletonin Vs. Valerian Extract

Good-quality sleep is essential to good health. People with insomnia suffer mentally, emotionally, socially and physically. Lack of a sleep has economic consequences as workers are absent more, have reduced productivity and have more health problems. People who occasionally need help falling asleep may benefit from supplements containing melatonin or the herb Valerian instead of more potent and expensive prescription sleep aids. If you have trouble falling asleep, consult your doctor before trying melatonin or Valerian supplements.

Melatonin Supplements

Melatonin is a hormone--a naturally occurring substance that regulates the functions of cells in the body. In humans and other mammals, the majority of the body's melatonin is produced and released from the pineal gland. The body synthesizes melatonin from the amino acid tryptophan. Melatonin supplements are either manufactured through chemical synthesis or derived from cow pineal glands. To prevent the spread of infectious agents from cattle to humans, several countries have banned the sale of supplements containing melatonin from cattle tissue. Melatonin can be purchased in capsule, tablet or liquid dosage forms.

Sleep Properties of Melatonin

Melatonin helps mammals maintain normal wake-sleep rhythms. It is produced at night. Exposure to light slows its production and release. When taken up to an hour before bedtime, melatonin may help your fall asleep faster. The "MedlinePlus" website of the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH) lists melatonin as "likely effective" for sleep disorders in the blind and in children with autism or mental retardation. The NIH rates melatonin as possibly effective for jet lag, insomnia and in for elderly who have difficulty getting to sleep after they quit taking benzodiazepines. According to the NIH, melatonin is "possibly ineffective" in helping people with insomnia due to shift work.

In a 2004 review published in "Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality" upheld melatonin's safety, but questioned its effectiveness. The reviewers concluded that melatonin was not effective in treating primary or secondary sleep disorders, nor was it it effective in abetting sleep disorders due to jet lag or shift work. A 2009 study published in "Sleep Medicine Clinics" showed, however, that melatonin-combined with the use natural or artificial bright light-can indeed shift the sleep wake patterns enough to prevent or reduce jet lag.

Valerian Preparations

The Valerian plant or Valeriana officinalis, is native to Europe and Asia. It is also known by the names garden heliotrope and all-heal. The roots, underground stems and stolons are sold as dietary supplements. Valerian plants are prepared as teas, tinctures, powders and extracts. Powdered Valerian is marketed in capsule or tablet dosage forms. Valerian root tea is often combined and packaged with other herbs to help masks its strong odor and flavor.

Sleep Properties of Valerian

Valerian herbal products contain phytochemicals that may be responsible for its effectiveness as a sleep inducer and sedative. It is thought that Valerian works like benzodiazepine sleep medicines and sedatives. It probably increases the effectiveness of the natural neurotransmitter gamma aminobutyric acid or GABA. The NIH considers Valerian to be "possibly effective" as a treatment for insomnia.

A 2003 review published in the journal "American Family Physician", concludes that Valerian is a safe, well tolerated and effective herbal sleep aid. A randomized, double-blind study of Valerian extract was published in the journal "Pharmacopsychiatry" in 2000. Sixteen subjects were given Valerian or placebo and surveyed about how long it took them to get to sleep, the length of their sleeping periods and how they felt in the morning. The Swedish researchers found that Valerian produced slow-wave or deep sleep more often than placebo. They concluded that Valerian is effective for the treatment of "mild psychophysiological insomnia."

Side Effects of Valerian

Although the FDA classifies Valerian extract as a dietary supplement, its sedative properties deserve the same respect as prescription medications do. You should not drive or operate dangerous equipment after taking Valerian. Valerian may heighten the sedative effects of alcohol and other nervous system depressants such as benzodiazepines, muscle relaxers, narcotic pain relievers and some allergy remedies.

One oft-cited 1989 study published in the "British Medical Journal" avers Valerian to be toxic to the liver. The review consists of four case studies of subjects who experienced hepatic damage after taking one of two herbal remedies. Neither remedy contained Valerian alone, but included other herbals such as asafetida, hops, skullcap, and gentian. Without direct proof, the authors blamed Valerian alone as the cause of the patient's liver damage. The NIH does warn that Valerian extract may effect certain liver enzymes that are necessary to metabolize and eliminate medications such as lovastatin, ketconozole, itraconazole, fexofenadine, triazolam, from phenytoin, phenobarbital and omeprazole from the body. Talk with your doctor before taking Valerian as a sleep aid-especially if you are taking prescription medications.