Childhood Melatonin Overdoses Are On the Rise

Many parents have given their children melatonin supplements to help them sleep, but now the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is warning about an alarming increase in melatonin overdoses among children over the last 10 years.

There's been a 530% increase, with the largest spike happening over the coronavirus pandemic.

"We need to store melatonin in a safe place," said Dr. Ashanti Woods, who specializes in General Pediatrics at Mercy Family Care Physicians in Baltimore.

According to Dr. Woods, the biggest problem is access. Children are able to help themselves to the medication, some of which tastes like candy. Taking too much can cause abdominal pain and nausea or worse.

"Some children have ended up in the hospital or ICU with respiratory symptoms as well. Melatonin can cause what we call respiratory distress, that's where you stop breathing and you're going to need acute level care," Dr. Woods said.

There were more than 260,000 children and teen melatonin overdoses reported to poison control centers across the United States from 2012 to 2021. More than 4,000 children were hospitalized with 300 of them requiring treatment in the Intensive Care Unit. Five children required medical ventilation and two children, a 1-year-old and a 3-month-old, died of melatonin overdoses.

The CDC said the vast majority - 94% of overdose cases - were unintentional, but there were instances where teens intentionally overdosed in suicide attempts.

Lauren Tscherne is a mom to college-age kids. She said her son uses melatonin and worries he takes too much.

"Anything is a concern when it comes to over the counter medications. They don't read what's going on, they listen to their friends that this is a good idea and pop them," Tscherne said.

At safe levels, melatonin is harmless and can help children, and adults, sleep. However too much of this good thing can end in a trip to the hospital.

View Dr. Woods' interview about melatonin overdoses.