Melatonin
Melatonin is a hormone in the body that regulates the sleep-wake cycle. It might be useful to treat certain children with ADHD who experience the symptom of sleep disturbances.
In many cases, trouble sleeping is a side effect of stimulant medication that doctors prescribe to treat ADHD. Stimulants work by increasing activity in both the brain and central nervous system.
Although this often improves ADHD symptoms, it can lead to the following sleep problems:
- difficulty getting to sleep and waking up
- waking up throughout the night
- daytime sleepiness
A 2019 study investigated the benefits of melatonin in children with ADHD who developed sleep problems as a result of taking the stimulant methylphenidate. All 74 participants had different doses of melanin for at least 4 weeks.
The researchers used parental reports to determine treatment success. According to the reports, melatonin effectively improved sleep problems in 60.8% of participants