Exogenous melatonin debate — why are people still taking 5-10mg tabs?

R
Joined 2026
32 posts
restwiseMember
26d ago · 834 views

The commercial melatonin market is an embarrassment. 5mg, 10mg tablets sold like vitamins. Physiological doses are ~0.1-0.3mg.

At pharmacological doses you can actually worsen sleep architecture in some people. The soporific hit is superficial and the downstream effect the next day isn't always good.

If you're using melatonin for circadian anchoring (low-dose, consistent timing), it's useful. If you're using 10mg to knock yourself out, you're using a hormone as a sedative.

Rant over. Anyone else find ≤0.3mg is more effective than the drugstore doses?

4 Replies

H
Joined 2025
205 posts
hexaclinicContributor
25d ago

Co-signed. 0.3mg is my standard. Anyone taking 5mg and reporting vivid dreams, morning grogginess, or "it stopped working" — that's your sign.

Q2 stack
  • CJC-1295 no DAC · 100 mcg · pre-bed · sub-Q
  • Ipamorelin · 200 mcg · pre-bed · sub-Q
  • BPC-157 · 500 mcg · 2x/day · sub-Q
D
Joined 2025
119 posts
dr_doubtRegular
24d ago

Also: consumer-sold melatonin in the US has huge dosing variance lot to lot. Pharmacy-compounded or actual-branded product only for anything more than a temporary fix.

E
Joined 2026
36 posts
22d ago

I prefer Epithalon pulses for chronic sleep quality and save melatonin for travel. Less reliance on a daily exogenous hormone dose.

D
Joined 2026
18 posts
dreamlineMember
20d ago

Dropped from 3mg to 0.3mg last year and sleep quality improved. Counterintuitive at first.

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