melatonin in children - Autism Spectrum Message Board

sandyt · 04-12-2004, 08:41 PM

Has anyone tried using melatonin to help autistic children sleep? Our son is 3 1/2 years old and has great difficulty falling asleep. He also wakes frequently at night, possibly due to nightmares or night terrors (he screams out in his sleep and then usually goes right back to sleep). The pediatrician recommended it but when I asked at the Health food store I was told that children should not take it and they recommended calcium and magnesium for sleep. The only other medication he is on is an antihistamine (and that does not make him drowsy). I would also like to try Vitamin B6 and magnesium in the near future as other people on this board have had success with those in improving attention and focus.

shue · 04-13-2004, 02:24 PM

We have not used it with Abby, but a friend of mine who nannied for an autistic boy said that they used it with great success. Our ped. neuro. said that in sleep studies, melatonin did not lenghten the time spent in the deep REM state, but who knows who funded those studies, KWIM? A DAN doctor would probably be able to help you with the doesage. Abby has similar sleep issues to your son, from what you described. We haven't tried it yet because melatonin gives me nightmares and my mother as well, so I have been reluctant to try it.

KathleenW · 04-13-2004, 03:45 PM

My son has always been the perfect sleeper since he turned 2 months old. I agree about the dreams I used to use melatonin and some of the dreams were very disturbing.

Try this article. It has great information. [url]http://www.autism.org/melatonin.html[/url]

sandyt · 04-13-2004, 07:58 PM

Thank you both for the info. I did not know that melatonin could cause nightmares (and since he seems to already have those, I don't want them to increase). I started the B6, magnesium, and calcium today so we will see if they help.