Question on Melatonin & intake tricks

iVillage Member
Registered: 09-10-2004
Question on Melatonin & intake tricks
5
Mon, 03-10-2008 - 3:45pm

My bestfriend, who is having some major issues with her daughter (3 yr old, NT - might have some sensory issues)

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iVillage Member
Registered: 06-25-2003
Mon, 03-10-2008 - 4:10pm

3mg is way too huge a dose for a little one. I would start on 0.1mg or maybe even less. When *I* first started taking melatonin a few years ago, 0.5mg did the trick just fine for me, and I am fully grown.

You can get drops and chewable melatonin tables in some places. I use the mint flavored chewables (0.5mg) from Trader Joes. Peter gets one per night and he is 9½ / 75lbs. Siobhan was taking half of one of those until she turned 7.

I would research more about melatonin and potential sleep apnea. It raises a huge red flag with me, too, and I would not risk it unless a doctor could tell me exactly why it would NOT be dangerous. If a child has sleep apnea, that is a potentiallty life-threatening condition, which should be addressed as a priority. it could also explain her night wakings. I have a friend whose kid had bad sleep apnea, and she would wake more than 10 times each night. Once they got the CPAP machine, the kid slept like a babe through the whole night.

Actually the more I think of the whole situation, the more I think this child's doc is an idiot, and your friend should change peds and seek competent advice.

I hope this helps.

-Paula

-Paula

visit my blog at www.onesickmother.com

-Paula

visit my blog at www.onesickmother.com
iVillage Member
Registered: 03-27-2003
Mon, 03-10-2008 - 8:18pm

I would say 3mg would be huge for a kid that size.

                                

iVillage Member
Registered: 04-07-2003
Mon, 03-10-2008 - 9:08pm

I agree with the others about checking into the health/safety of using melatonin with sleep apnea.

Like the others said, there are liquids, chewables, and sublinguals (dissolve under tongue) available. My kids are hypersensitive to taste, but they like the Source Naturals brand liquid melatonin which is orange flavored. The droppers are marked in .25 ml increments, and 1-ml equals 1-mg.

I tried the pills with my kids at first, but it's very hard to cut them into equal smaller portions even with a pill cutter, so I prefer the liquids.

It's best to start at a low dose and work your way up if it's not enough, both so you don't over-medicate and also because too high of a dose can cause nightmares.

I started using melatonin on my NT dd when she was 3yo (now 4yo). She's a normal to husky girl, and .25mg is usually plenty for her. Sometimes we have to go up to .50mg. The only negative we've experienced is that my dd gets really grumpy just before she falls asleep.

iVillage Member
Registered: 08-10-2006
Tue, 03-11-2008 - 1:32pm

Hi Ginny!


I can't comment about the melatonin dosage, we never had to use it, however Nick had developed mild sleep apnea and snored like a wild bear around 17 months.

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Christine

iVillage Member
Registered: 04-11-2003
Tue, 03-11-2008 - 3:02pm
I wouldn't worry about the melatonin dose that much.
Samantha