2023-11-28 01:36:16
More and more American parents are giving their children melatonin to help them sleep, with nearly one in five young people under the age of 14 taking it regularly.
A new study published in the journal JAMA Pediatrics reveals that about 18% of children ages 5 to 9 use them.
It also shows that although melatonin can be a short-term solution to help sleep, the majority of parents give it regularly to their child.
Although the study was conducted on a small sample that may not be extrapolable to the entire U.S. population, the study echoes other surveys that show this drug is increasingly used in the South. of the Canadian-American border.
The American Academy of Sleep Medicine also carried out an online survey whose results showed that 46% of responding parents had already given it to their child under 13 years old.
Although like in Canada, melatonin is considered a supplement in the United States, it is considered a medicine in several countries and must be prescribed, BBC News reports.
The US Poison Control Center recorded a 530% increase in instances of melatonin ingestions among children between 2012 and 2021 according to the US Centers for Disease Control (CDC).
The American Academy of Sleep Medicine recommends that parents keep melatonin out of reach of children, as they would other medications, and advises consulting a pediatrician before giving it to help them sleep.
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