Do you know what melatonin is? How are melatonin and pregnancy related? Can you take melatonin while pregnant? How do you fight insomnia when you are pregnant?
These are questions we need answers for. Let’s find out more as we continue to explore the connection between melatonin and pregnancy.
The Relationship Between Pregnancy and Sleep
Pregnancy is a little miracle, which brings a lot of changes to your and your partner’s life. While some of the changes include pregnancy glow everyone keeps talking about, sleep is rare among the positive shifts.
Now, here are some questions that may arise during pregnancy.
As you read further, you’ll find out all of these questions.
Studies show that sleeping disorders are occurring due to hormonal, psychological, behavioral changes and physical factors. These can range from insomnia, nightly awakenings, and parasomnias, to snoring and disproportionate sleep. Read more regarding the Center for Vascular Medicine and know how one can take care of oneself and get through the pain.
It’s also known that the levels of melatonin can be 100 fold higher in the third semester compared to a non-pregnant healthy woman.
This means that majority of young moms have experienced sleeping disorders. But how can you avoid this problem or at least make it less significant?
I’m writing this article to help pregnant women understand how melatonin and pregnancy are related. This is for you to know whether or not it’s safe and what effect you can expect using melatonin while pregnant.
And, of course, how to improve your sleep during those nine months.
You will find everything together with some additional information about the benefits and usage of melatonin in this article.
Melatonin and Pregnancy: What is Melatonin?
Before moving further into the melatonin & pregnancy, I want you to know everything there is about this supplement.
To begin with, melatonin is a hormone, which is released by the pineal gland in your brain. This hormone regulates sleep cycles. People who have trouble sleeping due to jet lag or night shifts, usually take this medication as a short-term solution.
Needless to say, the melatonin as medicine is created synthetically in the lab and it usually comes in the form of a pill.
Now, how does melatonin regulate the night and day cycles? Your body reacts to the darkness signalizing that it is time to sleep, at this time your body produces more melatonin. And, the light is a warning to your body that it’s time to wake up, so the melatonin production decreases. Therefore, it is considered that this supplement could be beneficial for those who suffer from insomnia or simply have difficulty falling asleep.
Insomnia and Pregnancy
I’ve already told you that insomnia during pregnancy is quite a common phenomenon, but let me put it in numbers. According to the research, about 78% of pregnant women have a problem falling asleep or experience very low-quality sleep. It may be caused because of discomfort caused by the size of your abdomen, the need to go to the bathroom frequently, back pain, hormonal changes, anxiety, and many other reasons.
Yet, even if it’s a common problem, it doesn’t mean you should take it for granted. You need to understand the risks that can appear due to the lack of sleep and visit the Pregnancy Resource Center in Oregon to find a suitable solution to avoid such risks and have a healthy pregnancy. First of all, insomnia can cause complications in some circumstances. As the studies showed, not only the lack of sleep but also the low-quality of sleep can result in birth complications, depression, increased risk of preterm birth.
Now, even if there are certain risks that the majority of pregnant women are aware of, it can still be very difficult to deal with these problems. One of the ways to fight it is to use natural supplements, such as melatonin. But the question is, can you take melatonin while pregnant?
Melatonin and Pregnancy: Is Melatonin Safe During Pregnancy?
Even though people who suffer from insomnia or other sleep disorders, often use melatonin, it is not yet known if it’s safe to use melatonin while pregnant. While some say that it’s safe to take melatonin in small doses of 3mg or under, there’s no standard dosage, which can create certain risks.
The Department of Psychiatry, in Norway, performed the test on pregnant animals, to see how they were affected by the melatonin. The study showed that this supplement negatively affected the pregnant animal’s and the baby’s weight, and even mortality. Of course, so much more human studies should be carried out in order to see if the melatonin and pregnancy can go together.
Since the studies are still in the early process, accurate results cannot be presented. However, there are a few conceivable benefits of melatonin while pregnant such as:
- Fertility increase
- Decrease the risk of preterm birth
- Lower the risk of preeclampsia
- Improve sleep
Note that is there’s still a research gap and these benefits are related to the natural melatonin and pregnancy, melatonin as a supplement is not yet known to work similarly. Therefore, before using any medicaments, always talk to your doctor.
So, is melatonin safe during pregnancy?
There’s a lack of research to give you a firm answer. That’s why, if there’s a way to avoid it, always choose to do so.
What are the Benefits of Melatonin?
You already understand that melatonin & pregnancy may not be the best combination. And even if there are some theories that melatonin while pregnant can improve some of the indicators, no one is yet certain if the long-term usage cannot do any harm.
Despite the fact that melatonin is often the research object, the study gap of broader research exists. The studies are needed to determine whether or not the melatonin is effective and safe to use for people suffering from insomnia, especially in long-term usage.
However, the analysis of 19 short-term studies revealed that it took an average of 7 minutes less to fall asleep for people with sleeping disorders. Thus, even if it’s unclear if melatonin & pregnancy can be compatible, there are beneficial sides to this drug (of course, in this case, I’m not referring to the pregnant
women).
You already know that melatonin is often used as a supplement to fight insomnia, and it was already proven that it helps. But what is other positive effects melatonin can have on you?
Benefits of Melatonin
Research has proven that melatonin can help to fight seasonal affective disorder (SAD), which is more often called seasonal depression. Many people (about 10%) have experienced this condition, maybe you’re one of them?
Melatonin can be used by men who want to be strong. This medication might increase the levels of human growth hormone (HGH) in men’s bodies, which means, it can benefit in the increase of both muscle and body mass.
Another benefit includes possible eye health improvement. Since the melatonin contains a lot of antioxidants, it might prevent cell damage, which could lead to the delay of age-related eye damage and maintain visual clarity.
The last advantage of using melatonin is the help with Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), which is a digestive disorder that is caused when stomach acid flows back into the tube connecting your mouth and esophagus. The melatonin can obstruct the secretion of stomach acids and allow it to enter the esophagus.
That’s about it about the benefits of melatonin.
So, even if melatonin & pregnancy may not be compatible or used only in a very small dosage, women who are not expecting and men can use this supplement expecting some advantageous results.
Can melatonin be toxic?
Now, the only question that might bother you, can melatonin be toxic? Even if there’s a concern of the spread usage of melatonin as a consumerism product, there are no cases of overdose or proven toxicity detected. Therefore, you can use it safely, however, pay attention to the dose written on the package and use medicaments for the intended purposes.
How to Take Melatonin?
As melatonin and pregnancy may not be the best combination, before taking any medication, it’s strongly recommended to talk to your doctor.
Now, usually, melatonin supplements come in a pill that you have to swallow with some water. Most commonly, the dose varies from 1 to 3 mg, which manages to raise the levels of melatonin in your body up to 20 times and can go even higher.
If you decide to take melatonin, the best option would be to take it at the same time every day, as you drink it to normalize your sleeping cycle. Note that if you take any kind of pills, especially when it’s related to melatonin & pregnancy, always read the information paper and use the dose that is prescribed, never overdose any of the drugs as it may cause negative reactions or allergies.
Try These Tips Before Taking Medicaments
Many people ask, is melatonin safe during pregnancy, however, there are certain things you can do before taking any medications.
First of all, try sleeping on your left side. Studies show that this position causes the highest blood and nutrient flow to your fetus. While sleeping on your side, try to bend your knees. This way, you will remove the pressure in your lower back. You can also try to put a pillow between your knees, it will reduce the pressure from your back and add extra comfort.
If you still find it difficult to settle, you can try different positions with a pillow. That should help you to find a comfortable rest position without the
combination of melatonin & pregnancy.
Secondly, create a sleeping environment. Another option for those who feel that melatonin & pregnancy is not the best choice is to create the perfect environment for sleeping. To begin with, turn off all of the devices that spread the light to make it as dark as possible. Do not watch TV before bed, The research has proven it
to be one of the most crucial mistakes made by those who suffer from insomnia. Get quality mattress from Eva for a sound sleep.
Finally, if you have an old mattress, think about getting a new one, which would provide you with needed support. If you need some help, you can find some of the best mattress providers here.
Activities to Maintain Regular Sleeping Cycle
Moving further, maintain the regular sleeping cycle. You should always try to go to sleep and wake up at the same time every day. It will allow your body to adapt and maintain the regular cycle of the day.
What is more, you should try to work out regularly to release some of the energy unless your doctor or gynecologist recommends differently. Exercises will increase blood circulation and you will notice as your mood gets so much better. But note that you shouldn’t do any exercise right before bed unless it’s a very light workout.
Try doing something relaxing before bed and you won’t have to ask anymore, can you take melatonin while pregnant? You can do such activities as reading a book, taking a warm bath, writing, meditating, listening to calm music. The list goes even longer, you just need to pick something.
If you try these tips, you may avoid using any medicaments, which are not recommended for pregnant women. So why not try something that comes natural,
before making any big choices.
And, if it’s a very difficult time for you, remember that you’re not alone. You can even join some groups to relate to other women. There are always societies you can find on Facebook and Twitter, and also specialized forums, such as:
- Babycentre
- The Bump
- BabyandBump
- Pregnancy Forum
Therefore, there’s a variety of opportunities online, which can help you to feel better by sharing your feelings with other moms-to-be or young mums.
Conclusions
Therefore, you came to this article hoping to find out the relationship between melatonin and pregnancy. And by now, you should know all the needed information related to this medication.
Melatonin is not yet proven to be safe for pregnant women as there are no large-scale studies conducted.
Before making any decisions, you should try at least some of the tips that I mentioned. Try sleeping on your left side, exercise, and a pillow between your knees. You can also try calming activities, such as meditation, reading books and listening to music. It should help you to normalize your sleeping cycle without the need to take melatonin while pregnant.
Furthermore, melatonin can help you to sleep better, fight seasonal depression, improve eye health and fight reflux.
Thus, while melatonin might seem like a safe option, always talk to your doctor before taking it. I only use USANA’s melatonin as it’s clean and safe. If you want more info on that, just email me.
As for melatonin & pregnancy, I wouldn’t recommend using it, just because there are no large scale studies on how it affects women who are expecting.
