Melatonin for Jet Lag

Whether you fly occasionally for vacations, or frequently for business, if you are crossing into different time zones, you are likely to have your sleep patterns disrupted for a few days. Taking melatonin during these times of air travel may help you sleep better.

Melatonin is a naturally occurring hormone secreted by the pineal gland, which helps to induce sleepiness. When traveling into different time zones, your body’s time clock is thrown off and melatonin can help regulate your sleep rhythm so that you can get to sleep faster.

The key is in knowing when to take melatonin. For instance, if you were flying from California to New York, you may want to take a dose of melatonin in the early evening (your normal time), and when you get there you will take it about an hour before bedtime at the new time zone. When you returned back to California, you would then go back to taking it about an hour before bedtime, and if you wake up again before 3:30-4:30 a.m., then you would take another tablet. This should only be necessary for a few days on either trip.

Also, when you are traveling and trying to find ways to fall sleep easier, you may want to cut back on the amount of alcohol and caffeine you consume, as this interferes with the body’s natural production of melatonin. Smoking is also a no-no.

The plus side if taking melatonin for the purpose of jet lag, is that you should only need it for a few days, so being a short-term solution, it is relatively safe. However, if you are on any medication that you have to take every day, you should always check with your physician before taking sleep aids.