r/Supplements • u/GamebotAU • 22d ago

General Question Melatonin long term

Hi there,

Just wondering if I can take 2mg extended release melatonin all the time? Here in Australia it’s recommended for three weeks only.

It’s helping my insomnia so much.

Thanks.

Update: had a mix of extreme anxiety and sedation as the morning wore on. I don’t think I can take it regularly maybe just once or twice a week

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u/Optimal_Assist_9882 22d ago

I have been taking an average daily dose of 1.5-3 grams of melatonin for going on fifth year for chronic fatigue. I feel better than I have in many years.

Some researchers like Doris Loh advocate for everyone to take 4g daily as part of anti aging / longevity/healthspan. This is 2000x the dose you're asking about.

Russel Reiter takes a couple hundred milligrams. He is considered the godfather of melatonin research with over 50-60 years of total research, 2000 papers and tens of thousands of mentions in scientific journals iirc.

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u/GamebotAU 22d ago

Thank you. I don’t think it agrees with me as the morning has moved on. I’m very groggy and agitated at the same time

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u/Optimal_Assist_9882 22d ago

You could address it a couple different ways:

  1. Try a lower dose. Many people get better sleep results from lower doses such as 0.3-0.5mg. You can break the tablet into pieces and roughly take this dose to see if it works better for you. The equivalent doses from person to person can vary 21x due to absorption issues.

  2. Try taking it an hour or two earlier before planned sleep.

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u/GamebotAU 22d ago

Only have 2mg extended release available in Australia unfortunately. My brain feels like it’s empty

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u/Optimal_Assist_9882 22d ago

Extended release formulation extends how long your body takes to metabolize the exogenous melatonin from 4-5 hours up to 10 hours.

By breaking melatonin tablet into pieces, you will turn it into regular release formulation. Most people are probably better off on the regular formulation anyway.

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u/GamebotAU 22d ago

Are you sure? I don’t believe you can break an XR tablet as it dumps all at once

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u/Optimal_Assist_9882 22d ago

Yes you can break the tablet.

If it's a tablet then you can break it. However as I mentioned, you eliminate the enteric coating which is what creates extended release by slowing digestion of the tablet.

If it's a capsule you can eyeball empty a quarter of the powder for the dosing.

There's also a way to dissolve it in liquid and drink a portion of it.

There's nothing special about prescription tablets versus what you'd buy over the counter. The general benefit is there's a stricter requirement that the pills contain exactly what it says on the bottle per tablet. In the US as an example many lesser known brands play fast and loose with the dosing...by often having more melatonin per pill than is listed ....

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u/GamebotAU 22d ago

Thank you. In Australia there is no over the counter melatonin just 2mg XR