Melatonin does not have many common side effects but there are things you can do to help cope with them:

• Feeling sleepy or tired in the daytime.
• Headache.
• Stomach ache.
• Feeling sick (nausea)
• Feeling dizzy.
• Feeling irritable or restless.
• Dry mouth.
• Dry or itchy skin.

Melatonin is regulated as a dietary supplement This means that it's regulated less strictly by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) than a prescription or over-the-counter drug would be.

The FDA does not regulate supplements. Consequently, melatonin is not officially FDA-approved for any indication. However, melatonin receptor agonists such as ramelteon and tasimelteon are FDA-approved for the treatment of insomnia. Non-FDA-approved Indications for melatonin include insomnia.

“If melatonin for sleep isn't helping after a week or two, stop using it,” says Buenaver. “And if your sleep problems continue, talk with your health care provider. If melatonin does seem to help, it's safe for most people to take nightly for one to two months. “After that, stop and see how your sleep is,” he suggests.

Less common melatonin side effects might include short-lasting feelings of depression, mild tremor, mild anxiety, abdominal cramps, irritability, reduced alertness, confusion or disorientation. Because melatonin can cause daytime drowsiness, don't drive or use machinery within five hours of taking the supplement.

If you've been drinking alcohol, it's also not safe to take melatonin. Melatonin is also not for you if you're pregnant or breastfeeding. Researchers simply don't have enough data to know if it's safe for fetuses or breastfed babies.

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Medicinal use of this product has not been approved by the FDA. SAMe should not be used in place of medication prescribed for you by your doctor. SAMe is often sold as an herbal supplement.

The use of melatonin for insomnia is not approved by the Malaysian Ministry of Health as it is considered a hormone and not a supplement.

In the UK and most of Europe, it's classed as a medicine, not a health supplement and as such, requires a prescription. This is because melatonin is considered “medical by function” which means that it requires a drug licence.

Regardless of whether it truly helps with sleep or not, Dr. Ramkissoon doesn't recommend taking melatonin long-term. "Namely, because if you think you need to take melatonin every night to get to sleep, we need to understand why that's the case," explains Dr. Ramkissoon.

Melatonin should only be taken for a maximum of 13 weeks to treat short-term sleep problems in adults, but longer courses may be used on the advice of a specialist.

Melatonin is relatively safe, but there are some dangers associated with taking too much. Depending on the severity of symptoms, a person may need to call 911 if they've taken large amounts of melatonin and are experiencing chest pain, extremely high blood pressure, or shortness of breath.

Depression: Melatonin can make symptoms of depression worse. High blood pressure: Melatonin can raise blood pressure in people who are taking certain medications to control blood pressure. Avoid using it. Seizure disorders: Using melatonin might increase the risk of having a seizure.