08/09/2025
Can't get melatonin off iHerb?
I encourage melatonin regulation over replacement.
Most people think melatonin is only made by the brain in the pineal gland — but here's the plot twist:
👉 Your gut actually produces 400x more melatonin than your brain.
PMID: 37298553
It doesn’t just indirectly help with sleep — gut melatonin also regulates digestion, reduces inflammation, and supports a healthy microbiome when in balance. Depending on where the melatonin is made, and the ratio of brain-gut melatonin, it can support different jobs, so supporting healthy crosstalk is important.
🦠 Your gut bacteria can directly influence how much melatonin your body produces.
..and here comes the bomb 💣:
Too much melatonin in the gut (out of balance with the brain) can encourage the growth of histamine-releasing microbes (which make it harder to sleep and worsen gut inflammation).
Got gut symptoms? I wouldn't be touching melatonin supplements if I could avoid it. The long-term impact of melatonin supplements on the gut really needs further investigation as it might be doing long-term harm.
Were you ever told about risks of taking melatonin supplements?
It might be time to investigate the underlying cause of low melatonin instead. 🔎
