Sleep issues are bad enough for a growing number of Americans, but a new study raises the question that some parents may be overdosing their own children with melatonin.
So much, in fact, that the number of melatonin ingestion cases reported to poison control centers across the U.S. increased 530% from 2012 to 2021 – and most of those were children younger than five years old.
New research from the University of Colorado Boulder, published in JAMA Pediatrics, shows that nearly one in five school-aged children and preteens now take melatonin for sleep, and some parents give the hormone to preschoolers on a regular basis.
That word “hormone” should be taken seriously, too. Some researchers have their hand in the air, raising questions that since melatonin is a hormone, could taking melatonin theoretically affect hormonal development? Research has yet to conclusively say yes or no to that question, but the possibility still looms.
The fact that gummies look and taste like candy also poses another risk.
A sleep doctor raises even more questions
How slippery of a slope is giving melatonin to children? The Sleep Doctor, Dr. Michael Breus shares his thoughts on the negative effects of melatonin in children with ConsumerAffairs.
“This saddens me to see these numbers because once again we are not thinking about the health of our children,” he said.
“I do not believe we should give pills to kids to sleep. It gives the wrong message, and in the case of melatonin, it's usually not doing any good. There are very few cases where a child would actually require melatonin, and all of those would fall under either having a deficiency or Autism.”
Breus also doubled down on the fact that melatonin is a hormone and parents need to realize that, in most cases, children make over four times the amount of melatonin they need, making this completely unnecessary.
Melatonin has “significant” interaction effects with other medications, too he said – including antidepressants, diabetes meds, and blood pressure meds.
“If a child is on one of these for any reason their treatment may be affected. Ninety-nine percent of parents are overdosing their kids, and we have no idea what this effect can have in the future.”
Photo Credit: Consumer Affairs News Department Images
Posted: 2023-12-07 12:44:42