Should You & Can You Have Melatonin In Food?

Melatonin is a hormone that is naturally produced in the brains of humans. This hormone plays an active role in regulating sleeping cycles. Supplemental supplies of melatonin can be an effective means of treating sleeping problems and the effects of jet lag. Certain foods also contain some levels of melatonin. The melatonin levels in these foods are not as concentrated as those found in supplements, so while a diet rich in these choices may assist in treating sleeping problems, you may need to eat a substantial amount in order to achieve the same effect provided by supplementary supplies.

Warnings

Before you decide to try out melatonin either in concentrated form or as a regular part of your diet, consult your physician. Health care professionals generally caution against long-term use of melatonin or taking it in large doses due to the potential to develop side effects such as drowsiness and fatigue, sexual dysfunction and depression. Because it may have a contraceptive effect, women attempting to conceive should avoid melatonin, according to Drugs.com.

Dosage

According to the University of Maryland Medical Center, no standards for a recommended dose of melatonin exist. Since your body already produces melatonin, you should take care when eating foods containing the hormone, especially if you are also using supplements. Melatonin production kicks into gear during the night when the process of digestion slows down. Eating foods that contain melatonin before taking a supplemental dose close to bedtime may result in digestive difficulties that can undermine the hormone's ability to help you get to sleep.

Best Time to Eat

When you avoid taking supplements, the ideal time to eat foods containing melatonin is about an hour before bedtime. Since levels of melatonin in food can vary substantially, you may have to experiment with the specific foods you eat at this time to achieve the full effect.

Food Experimentation

Experimentation of the effects of foods containing melatonin affords the opportunity to find a food to your liking and taste since not all foods rich in this hormone are necessarily desirable choices. Among the specific foods to utilize in your nighttime experimentation are bananas, ginger, sweet corn, barley and Japanese radishes, according to the editors of "Nature's Prescriptions."

Soothing Serving Forms

Certain foods containing melatonin can be served in a form that in itself may stimulate your body's desire for rest and sleep. Among the foods preparations to consider are eating a bowl of tomato soup that combines the effects of melatonin with the soothing properties of warm soup. Warmth can also be a factor in choosing to ingest some hot oatmeal before preparing for bed. If you are used to having a late dessert before sleeping, you can indulge yourself while benefiting from the effects of melatonin by making a banana milkshake.