New review of melatonin sleep supplements

If you have hypertension can you take NSAIDs?
January 3, 2012
‘Flat Head’ Syndrome in babies usually temporary
January 4, 2012
Show all

New review of melatonin sleep supplements

Melatonin supplements may help some people get to sleep sooner, particularly those with chronic sleeping problems, but don’t just buy ANY supplement. A new review says they vary significantly in strength, dosage, and cost.ConsumerLab.com recently selected and tested nine different melatonin supplements. The testing showed that all contained their labeled amounts of melatonin, but the suggested daily dosage ranged from 1 mg to 50 mg; and cost ranged from just 4 cents to $1.36 for an equivalent dose of melatonin. This means you may not be using the right dose for your needs and you could be paying as much as 33 times more than necessary.
The two least expensive supplements, at 4 cents ($0.04) per 3 mg of melatonin are:

  • Puritan’s Pride Melatonin 3 mg
  • Spring Valley (Walmart) Melatonin 3 mg

The most expensive melatonin supplement, at $1.36 per 3 mg of melatonin, was Natrol Melatonin.
ConsumerLab.com also found that one supplement failed to properly disclose all of its ingredients (Melatonex, distributed Chattern, Inc.).
The melatonin test results and product comparisons are found in the new Melatonin Supplements Review published online. The report includes information on how to choose a melatonin supplement, dosage for different uses, and potential side-effects of melatonin.
The report includes information about 21 melatonin supplements – nine selected for testing by ConsumerLab.com, 10 that passed the same testing in ConsumerLab.com’s Voluntary Certification Program, and two products similar to others that passed testing.
Products covered in the report include:

  • Bios Life Melatonin,
  • CVS Pharmacy Melatonin,
  • Food Science of Vermont Melatonin-3,
  • Herbatonin,
  • Julian Whitaker, M.D. Restful Night Essentials,
  • Life Extension Melatonin – Capsules,
  • Life Extension Melatonin – Lozenges,
  • MaxiHealth Formula 605,
  • Melatonex,
  • Natrol Melatonin,
  • Nature Made Sleep,
  • Nature’s Bounty Triple Strength Melatonin,
  • Origin (Target) Melatonin,
  • Physiologics Melatonin Liquid,
  • Puritan’s Pride Melatonin,
  • Solgar Melatonin,
  • Spring Valley (Walmart) Melatonin,
  • Sundown Naturals Melatonin Liquid,
  • Twinlab Melatonin Caps,
  • Vitamin Shoppe Melatonin, and
  • Vitamin World Melatonin.

ConsumerLab.com is a leading provider of consumer information and independent evaluations of products that affect health and nutrition, with online reports for over 900 products.
The company is privately held and based in Westchester County, New York. It has no ownership from, or interest in, companies that manufacture, distribute, or sell consumer products.
Membership to www.ConsumerLab.com is available online.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.