The combining of herbal sleeping pills with other prescribed medications can be quite dangerous. These sleeping pills can limit the effectiveness of many other prescribed medications including blood thinners, birth control pills as well as certain anticancer medications. This means that you need to check with your healthcare professional in case you are trying out herbal sleeping pills.
There are various herbs which are believed to help in sleeping. These include chamomile, valerian root, as well as kava kava, lemon balm, besides passionflower, lavender, and St. John’s Wort. Many people tend to drink chamomile tea for its sedative properties. But it may even cause allergic reactions in those who have plant or pollen allergies. Valerian in herbal sleeping pills has been found to be useful for insomnia. but in case it is taken in high doses, it may cause vivid dreams, blurred vision, as well as changes in heart rhythm, besides excitability.
Melatonin refers to a naturally occurring hormone whose levels tend to peak at night. It is triggered by darkness. Its levels remain elevated throughout the night until light tends to decrease it. However, most studies have found positive results in helping jet lag as well as night shift workers, but its long term effects are unknown.
Tryptophan refers to a basic amino acid which is used in the formation of the chemical messenger serotonin. This is a substance in the brain which tells your body to sleep. L-tryptophan is a common byproduct of tryptophan, and a common ingredient of herbal sleeping pills. Studies have shown that L-tryptophan can help people in falling asleep faster, though the results, however, have been inconsistent.
In fact, these herbal sleeping pills are still considered as a better alternative to the prescription medication as they have relatively fewer side effects, while being effective in the long run.