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Sleep-Obsessed Millennials Are Ditching Melatonin… Here’s Why

Melatonin isn’t exactly canceled, but sleep-deprived millennials are moving on to other blends. 

By Maha Haq | Reviewed by Ysolt Usigan

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For years, melatonin basically owned the sleep wellness category. If somebody couldn’t sleep, the automatic answer was usually some variation of “just take melatonin.” Gummies, capsules, sleepy mocktails, teas, dissolvable tablets, pillow sprays, skin patches… the supplement became unavoidable and put into anything practical. But lately, melatonin’s reputation has gotten a little complicated.

A growing number of millennials are starting to rethink their relationship with the supplement, especially people deep into wellness culture who spent years experimenting with sleep hacks, routines, and recovery habits. The issue isn’t that melatonin is suddenly bad. So don’t worry about it if you need to take it. But a lot of people are realizing that it doesn’t always feel as simple and predictable as they originally thought.

As sleep wellness keeps evolving, people are starting to move away from the whole “just knock yourself out” approach.

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1. Dosages Got Weirdly High

A lot of people don’t realize how strong some melatonin products actually are. Dr. Emma Lin, a pulmonologist and sleep medicine physician, explained to VICE that melatonin “doesn’t directly sedate patients” and instead “regulates circadian rhythm by signaling when it’s time to sleep based on environmental cues (such as light).” Which alludes to the issue that many sleep supplements contain far........

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