Dealing with sleep apnea can prove a daily challenge. Though it manifests at night, patients can feel the effects during the day due to decreased sleep quality. Many patients will happily try any method to escape the condition. One such idea floating around the internet is melatonin. So, can melatonin help sleep apnea?
What Is Melatonin?
Melatonin is a hormone released by the body in response to darkness. The hormone itself does not make you sleepy. However, it can encourage the brain and body to prepare for sleep.
Once you have melatonin in your system, several things happen:
- Your muscles begin to relax
- Your heart rate may slow
- Your thinking may slow
- And you begin to feel sleepy or tired
You can purchase a seemingly endless variety of melatonin supplements and products at any grocery store or pharmacy. However, not everyone will benefit from them. In fact, many people may actually worsen their condition by taking melatonin. Which of these cases is sleep apnea?
Can Melatonin Help Sleep Apnea?
The short answer is no. Melatonin can worsen the effects of sleep apnea, particularly obstructive sleep apnea. While melatonin supplements may help patients with insomnia or jet lag, it has a negative effect on patients with sleep apnea.
However, melatonin’s impact on central sleep apnea is not harmful in most cases. Central sleep apnea occurs because the brain fails to send signals to the body to breathe. The exact cause of central sleep apnea is not yet uncovered, so more research is required to determine further details on its connection or resistance to melatonin.
Why Does Melatonin Worsen Sleep Apnea?
The presence of melatonin in the body can lead to muscle relaxation, a key element of sleeping. However, too much muscle relaxation plays a role in obstructive sleep apnea (OSA).
In OSA, tissues in the patient’s throat can obstruct (block) the patient’s airways. Partial obstruction results in the emblematic snoring associated with the condition. Complete airway obstruction can further interfere with breathing.
The additional muscle relaxation associated with melatonin may only worsen OSA symptoms.
Here is how it works:
- Weakened or relaxed muscles can cause obstructive sleep apnea
- Melatonin can further relax the muscles associated with sleep apnea
- Therefore, melatonin can worsen sleep apnea
It Actually Worsens Sleep
Even if melatonin helps a patient fall asleep quickly, the effects on OSA may impair sleep overall. If your muscles relax too much while asleep, they can significantly impede your breathing, sometimes with complete obstruction.
However, your body is smart enough to wake you up before you start suffocating in your sleep. While this means you avoid the risk of suffocation, you also lose out on sleep. Every time your muscles obstruct your breathing too much, you will wake up.
The effects of these sleep interruptions can build up over time. Such impaired sleep can lead to deficits in energy and memory and notable cognitive impairments.
Medication Interactions
While melatonin is a milder substance, it can still interact with medications or influence how well they work. Patients with sleep apnea may regularly take medications that melatonin can interact with. For example, patients with obesity can commonly have sleep apnea. Those same patients may already be taking blood pressure medication or diabetes medication.
When taking any medications, we recommend asking your doctor before starting supplements or other innocuous items. Just because something has a mild effect on its own does not mean it cannot have a negative interaction with another substance.
What If I Do Not Know If I Have Sleep Apnea?
Many people may have sleep apnea without knowing it. Individuals who live alone can especially be at risk for having an undiagnosed condition since they may never know about their snoring (the most apparent symptom). Many people feel the effects of sleep apnea on their lives (i.e., grogginess, headaches, fatigue) but do not connect the dots.
In these cases, someone who begins taking melatonin while having sleep apnea may face worsening symptoms and worse sleep. They might then take more melatonin to help with sleep, all the while not knowing their supplement has worked against them.
A sleep specialist can help you figure out the root cause of your sleep concerns.
Avoid Sleep Apnea Pitfalls
There is no adequate substitute for working with a qualified sleep apnea doctor. Visit Sleep MD in NYC to ensure your sleep aids are safe and effective.
