Melatonin Make You Feel Groggy? Try This Sleep Supplement Instead

Melatonin is a hormone that your brain naturally releases at night in response to the setting sun. This "hormone of darkness1" tells the rest of the body that it's time to start winding down for bed. And while this process probably worked like a charm to regulate our ancestors' sleep-wake cycles, fixtures of modern life (think cellphones, TVs, and bright reading lights) have made our evenings much brighter and our melatonin levels more variable.

That's where melatonin supplements come in: They provide a hit of the hormone for times when you have trouble producing it naturally. "Melatonin does one thing very well, which is to provide a specific signal to the brain that it is time to initiate the sleep process," family medicine physician Robert Rountree, M.D., previously told mbg.

But while it helps us fall asleep, it doesn't necessarily help us stay asleep or improve sleep quality at all. That can be one reason some people report grogginess, headaches, and a hungover feeling in the mornings after taking melatonin. The root cause of their insomnia—be it stress or a poor sleep environment—may have still gotten in the way of restorative rest and therefore caused morning fatigue.

Taking melatonin at the wrong time can also lead to a rough wakeup. Since your body doesn't naturally produce much melatonin during daylight hours, having a lot of it lingering in your system in the morning can lead to side effects. While these side effects aren't serious from a medical perspective (the NIH rules them largely mild), they can still put a damper on the first few hours of your day.

If you're looking for an alternative sleep supplement that won't mess with your mornings, check out magnesium.*

That's why mindbodygreen chose the ingredient as the star player in our first sleep supplement, sleep support+.* The form of magnesium we chose, magnesium glycinate, is highly bioavailable (meaning your body is good at absorbing it) and can be taken right before bedtime. And due to the way it interacts with the CNS, the mineral can help promote more restful nights and more alert mornings.* Unlike melatonin, it is also safe to take every night—though you should talk to your doctor before introducing any supplement to your routine.*