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I wanted to comment about Dr. Mixon, the MD who recommended that I try
melatonin for sleep.  I trust this doctor.  He specializes in longevity
medicine using diet, lifestyle, nutrition and hormone replacement for
improving quality of life for people over 45.  He has a lot of happy
patients that gladly pay "out of pocket" for his services.  (He's not on any
insurance plans.)

Another thing Dr. Mixon said causes women over 50 to suffer from poor sleep
is the decline in progesteron production.  Pure bio identical progesterone
is available by prescription in cream or in gel caps (Prometrium).
(Insurance does not pay for cream form progesterone, but does pay for
Prometrium)  True progesterone is also available in a low dose over the
counter cream at drug stores & health food stores.  I take prescription
strength progesterone at bedtime, but it alone doesn't enable me to get the
restful sleep I get when I combine it with low dose melatonin.

Dr. Mixon described the elderly sleep pattern.  They feel exhausted pretty
early in the evening so they crash about 8 or 9 PM, then their eyes pop open
about midnight or 1 PM & for the next five or six hours they toss & turn &
cap nap here & there for the rest of the night.  All day they struggle to
perk up.  By the end of the day, the cycle begins again.  He says that most
of his patients respond well to melatonin when they carefully titrate the
dose starting with 1 mg & increasing it every 3rd night until they find the
right dose.

As an aside, I heard from one person with fibromyalgia several years ago,
that she was pleasantly surprized with better sleep after she began
supplementing with stomach acid (HCl + pepsin) at meals.  Go figure!  I
believe it helped her because the HCl improves absorption of vitamins,
proteins and minerals which are necessary for proper sleep.

I have found that taking a good multi-mineral formula always helps me sleep
as well.  The ones that are formulated for bone health have been helpful to
me.  However, I can't take them at the full recommended dose because they
are TOO constipating.  I've used several brands.  There's only two I can
remember the names of:  TwinLab Tri Boron Plus and OsteoPrime Forte.  Both,
incidentally, contain betaine HCl, the acid found in stomach acid
supplements!

Stomach acid is something else that is usually in short supply in people
over 40.  So if supplementing stomach acid helps people sleep, then the
converse may be true:  that taking stomach acid blocking medications may
impair good sleep.  Think of the implication:  A young person taking
Prilosec or Nexium, may be setting themselves up for the same conditions
that cause sleep problems in the elderly.  Just food for thought.

Valerie in Tacoma

[A couple more items from respondants below.]
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I didn't see the original post inquiring about sleep aids. I am a
Naturopathic Practitioner and I use natural methods to assist people with
health issues.  When someone is having insomnia, I will suggest the herb,
Skullcap (also spelled Scullcap).  The most reliable brand commercially
(with which I am familiar) is Herb Pharm.   People with nervousness and
anxiety find Skullcap to be beneficial.

I recommend Skullcap tincture (the liquid form) - tinctures work best on an
empty stomach (2 hours after a meal and 1 hour before eating again). For
sleep, some have found that 1 - 2 squirts in a little bit of water about 1 -
2 hours before bed works well.

Other things that can help induce good restful sleep is to avoid sugars in
the evening - sugars raise the blood sugar levels (this includes fruit
unless the fruit is eaten with a small amount of protein).  A good evening
snack that would promote sleep is protein in a small amount (cheese, nuts,
etc.)

Of course this is all dependent upon what is causing the sleeplessness...if
a person just cannot shut off their mind, learning meditation and deep
breathing would be indicated.  Shelly
-------------------
My psychiatrist says that melatonin works in parallel, chemically, but does
not actually affect the seratonin in the way that it is supposed to.
However, Valerian does seem to help.  Sandy
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