Melatonin (N-acetyl-5-methoxytryptamine) is a hormone naturally occurring in plants, animals and fungus. It is created in animals directly from the amino acid tryptophan. One of it's central roles is aiding our circadian rhythm, our built in clock. A vital process, not only for our sleep but our overall health. The impacts of a circadian disruption include obesity, excessive hunger (polyphagia) and altered glucose metabolism. External sources of melatonin are found in our diets.
Dietary Sources of Melatonin (Ordered by amount per serving)
- Cherry Juice Concentrate
- Cherries
- Walnuts
- Mustard Seed
- Corn
- Rice
- Ginger root
- Peanuts
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influence of light and darkness on circadian rhythms |
Around our third month of life our melatonin levels become regular. Every 24 hour period the production of melatonin goes through phases. I am going to focus on what I think is the most important of these phases in regards to sleep and a natural sleep pattern.
Dim-light Melatonin Onset
Two hours before we fall asleep the body starts producing it's own melatonin. But only if there is dim lighting, this is because there is a direct correlation between light and melatonin as shown below in the graph below. We've all stayed up too late surfing the web wondering why we can't get to sleep. The answer is to shut off all screens in the room and get into bed.
One astoundingly useful program I have found to help the situation is f.lux. f.lux changes your monitors color temperature at a specific time (based on your geographical location) so that it is not suppressing the amounts of melatonin production in your brain. Official f.lux site linked below.
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