Melatonin Remedy for Sleeplessness in Parenthood
Melatonin could be the remedy you need if you are experiencing sleeplessness in parenthood.
Sleep deprivation and parenthood can go hand in hand. Unless you’re the lucky one who has a baby that sleeps through the night. Pretty sure there is only one of you out there.
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Getting enough sleep is imperative for one’s brain function and mental health. In the study, Chronic Melatonin Treatment Prevents Memory Impairment Induced by Chronic Sleep Deprivation, they found:
Sleep consists of two alternating stages: non-rapid eye movement sleep and rapid eye movement or paradoxical sleep. Sleep deprivation can be acute, which involves continuous sleep deprivation in the range of several hours up to a week. The other form of sleep deprivation is chronic form, which is characterized by daily sleep deprivation for several hours, typically 3–8 h/day, that lasts for weeks or months. Several human and animal studies have shown that both acute and chronic sleep deprivation produced memory defects in a number of behavioral tasks. Additionally, sleep deprivation impaired long-term potentiation in the hippocampus, which is a common cellular correlate of learning and memory functions. Sleep deprivation also elevated hippocampal oxidative stress, which was correlated with impairment of cognitive functions.
In other words, sleep is very important and influences how well we show up in the world.
The study goes on to explain the role of melatonin in relationship to sleep. The pineal gland produces the hormone melatonin at night and it tapers with daylight exposure. This hormone can help prevent short and long term memory impairment caused by chronic sleep deprivation.
If you are a parent it is very likely that you know sleep deprivation. It is an all too common situation. Consequently, melatonin could be a remedy for sleeplessness in parenthood. Check out the article to learn more. And as always talk with your care providers before taking any next steps.
