Does melatonin actually work for sleep?
Answered by the AskDoc Medical Team · Medically reviewed under our Medical Director, MBBS
For shifting a body clock, jet lag, shift work, natural night owls, yes, at low doses of 0.5 to 3 mg taken at the right time. For ordinary difficulty falling asleep it is modest at best, minutes, not the transformation the gummy aisle implies.
More is not better; higher doses often just add grogginess and vivid dreams.
Chronic insomnia responds far better to CBT-I, the structured behavioral treatment that beats pills in trials, than to any supplement. Melatonin is a clock tool, not a sleeping pill.
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For light sleepers
Foam earplugs or a steady white noise machine fix more nights than most sleep aids, and cost almost nothing. Worth trying before anything stronger.
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