Melatonin sleep aids have grown in popularity in recent years. According to the Sleep Foundation, 27.4 percent of adults take melatonin as a sleep aid and 88 percent who take it said it “helps them fall asleep faster.”

More than five times as many American adults used melatonin in 2018 than in 2000. The Sleep Foundation found the average adult takes melatonin four days a week, with 38.6 percent taking it daily.

Melatonin is the sleep hormone and produced naturally in the pineal gland of the brain. However, production and release often decline with age. It plays a key role in the body’s circadian rhythms. It is commonly used to treat sleep disorders such as insomnia and jet lag, according to the Mayo Clinic.

“Even sound sleepers have trouble falling asleep once in a while. You may want to try melatonin for sleep if you have difficulty for more than a night or two,” said Dr. Luis F. Buenaver, a sleep expert at Johns Hopkins Medicine.

Buenaver said most people’s bodies produce enough melatonin on their own and it puts people in a state of “quite wakefulness” to promote sleep, he said.

“However, there are steps you can take to make the most of your natural melatonin production, or you can try a supplement on a short-term basis if you’re experience insomnia, want to overcome jet lag, or are a night owl who needs to get to bed earlier and wake up earlier, such as for work or school,” Buenaver said.

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