By Our Reporter
Several natural remedies may help you to sleep better, including melatonin, magnesium, and valerian root. But even natural sleep aids should not replace good sleeping habits.
Sleep helps your body and brain function properly. A good night’s sleep can help improve your learning, memory, decision-making, and even creativity.
What’s more, getting insufficient sleep has been linked to a higher risk of developing conditions such as heart disease, diabetes, and obesity.
Despite this, many people don’t get enough sleep each night and around 20% of adults experience occasional symptoms of insomnia.
Getting good quality sleep often starts with good sleep practices and habits. However, for some people, that’s not enough.
If you need a little extra help to get a good night’s sleep, consider trying the following 10 natural sleep-promoting supplements.
1. Melatonin
Melatonin is a hormone your body produces naturally that signals to your brain that it’s time to sleep.
Time of day influences this hormone’s cycle of production and release — melatonin levels naturally rise in the evening and fall in the morning.
For this reason, melatonin supplements have become a popular sleep aid, particularly in instances where the melatonin cycle is disrupted, such as jet lag.
Several studies report that melatonin improves daytime sleep quality and duration. This is particularly beneficial for individuals whose schedules require them to sleep during the daytime, such as shift workers.
Melatonin may improve overall sleep quality in individuals with sleep disorders. Specifically, melatonin appears to reduce the time people need to fall asleep (known as sleep latency) and increase the total amount of sleep time.
While some other studies have not found that melatonin has a positive effect on sleep, they are generally few. Those that have observed beneficial effects generally provide participants with 3–10 milligrams (mg) of melatonin before bedtime.
Melatonin supplements appear to be safe for adults when used for short periods, although more research is needed on their long-term effects.
Furthermore, melatonin is not recommended for people who are pregnant or nursing, because there is limited research on its safety and effectiveness.
2. Valerian root
Valerian is an herb native to Asia and Europe. Its root is commonly used as a natural treatment for symptoms of anxiety, depression, and menopause.
Valerian root is also one of the most commonly used sleep-promoting herbal supplements in the United States and Europe.
Menopausal and postmenopausal women have seen their sleep quality and sleep disorder symptoms improve after taking valerian, according to one research review.
Another small study found that taking 530 mg of valerian per night for 30 days led to significant improvements in sleep quality, latency, and duration compared with a placebo in people who had undergone heart surgery.
A study in 39 people undergoing hemodialysis found that taking 530 mg of valerian root before bed for 1 month improved sleep quality, anxiety, and depression compared with a placebo.
Nevertheless, most observed improvements in these trials and studies were subjective. They relied on participants’ perception of sleep quality rather than on objective measurements taken during sleep, such as brain waves or heart rate.
Other studies have concluded that valerian’s positive effects are negligible at best. For instance, it may lead to a small improvement in sleep latency.
Regardless, short-term intake of valerian root appears to be safe for adults, with minor, infrequent side effects.
Despite the lack of objective measurements behind valerian, adults may consider testing it out for themselves.
However, the safety of valerian remains uncertain for long-term use and use in certain populations, including people who are pregnant or nursing.
3. Magnesium
Magnesium is a mineral involved in hundreds of processes in the human body, and it’s important for brain function and heart health.
In addition, magnesium may help quiet the mind and body, making it easier to fall asleep.
Studies show that magnesium’s relaxing effect may be partly due to its ability to regulate melatonin production. Magnesium is known to relax muscles and induce sleep.
Many forms of magnesium supplements are available, including some that combine magnesium with other sleep-promoting ingredients such as glycine or melatonin.
One study found that a combination of magnesium, melatonin, and vitamin B was effective in treating insomnia regardless of the cause.
Magnesium also appears to increase levels of gamma aminobutyric acid (GABA), a brain messenger with calming effects.
Studies suggest that insufficient levels of magnesium in the body may be linked to troubled sleep and insomnia.
On the other hand, increasing your magnesium intake by taking supplements may help you optimize the quality and quantity of your sleep.
One review of three studies in older adults found that magnesium supplementation could help reduce the amount of time it takes to fall asleep compared to a placebo.
It’s worth noting that this review focused on older adults, who may have had lower blood magnesium levels to start with. It’s uncertain whether these effects would be as strong in individuals with a higher dietary magnesium intake.
In another study, supplementing with 250 mg of magnesium and melatonin for 8 weeks significantly improved sleep quality in people with polycystic ovary syndrome.
However, more research is needed to understand how magnesium supplements could impact sleep when taken alone.
4. Lavender
The lavender plant can be found on almost all continents. It produces purple flowers that, when dried, have a variety of household uses.
Moreover, lavender’s soothing fragrance is believed to enhance sleep.
In fact, several studies suggest that simply smelling lavender oil shortly before sleep may be enough to improve sleep quality in those with or without insomnia.
A small study in older adults with dementia also suggests that lavender aromatherapy is effective at improving sleep disturbance symptoms. Participants’ total sleep time increased, and fewer people woke up very early and found themselves unable to get back to sleep.
Another study found that lavender aromatherapy improved sleep quality and reduced anxiety after 15 days in 60 people with coronary artery disease.
Though lavender aromatherapy is considered safe, the oral intake of lavender has been linked to nausea, belching, and diarrhea in some cases. Essential oils are intended for aromatherapy, not oral ingestion.
It’s also worth noting that only a limited number of studies are available on the effects of lavender supplements on sleep. Thus, more research is needed before strong conclusions can be made.
Passionflower, also known as Passiflora incarnata or maypop, is a popular herbal remedy for insomnia.
The species of passionflower linked to sleep improvements are native to North America. They’re also currently cultivated in Europe, Asia, Africa, and Australia.
Passionflower’s sleep-promoting effects have been demonstrated in animal studies. However, its effects in humans appear to depend on the form consumed.
One older study in humans compared the effects of a passionflower tea with those of a placebo tea made from parsley leaves.
Participants drank each tea about 1 hour before bed for a period of 1 week, taking a 1-week break between the two teas. Each tea bag was allowed to steep for 10 minutes, and researchers took objective measurements of sleep quality.
At the end of the 3-week study, the objective measurements indicated that participants had not experienced improvements in sleep.
However, when they were asked to rate their sleep quality subjectively, they rated it around 5% higher following the passionflower tea week compared with the parsley tea week.
In a recent study of people with insomnia, those who took passionflower extract over a 2-week period saw significant improvements in certain sleep parameters compared with a placebo.
