A popular dietary supplement can lead to nightmares at night

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Dietary supplements are believed to have improve general health. But like any product, they have side effects. Some majority does not even guess. For example, that too much melatonin is fraught with nightmares.

“Most melatonin supplements contain 5 to 10 milligrams of the substance,” says Dr. Whitney Roban, a clinical psychologist and sleep specialist. — Dosages above five milligrams have been shown to increase the likelihood of negative side effects such as nausea, restlessness, and headache. Another common side effect is overly realistic nightmares.”

People turn to melatonin to improve sleep. It is a hormone produced by the body. It helps to fall asleep at night and cope with fatigue or anxiety during the day. But studies have shown that overusing melatonin can increase the length of REM sleep, when nightmares are most common.

“If you spend more time in REM sleep, it makes sense that you'll have more dreams,” says Dr. Michel. Drerup, a behavioral sleep medicine psychologist at the Cleveland Clinic.

She explains that melatonin also triggers the production of a protein known as vasotocin, which helps regulate REM sleep at night. Increased amounts of melatonin can lead to higher vasotocin levels and therefore increased REM sleep and potentially vivid dreams.