Deadlines and packed days have made my past couple of weeks extra busy. And for someone with a Type A personality, this means that the odds of getting a good night’s sleep haven’t exactly been in my favor. So, I broke out my trusty bottle of melatonin, popping five milligrams of the sleep hormone supplement several nights in a row in the hopes of catching some z’s.
With fewer Americans getting the recommended eight hours of sleep and more of them saying they need more sleep, per an April 2024 Gallup poll, I’m just one of many helping the sleep aids market grow to $130 billion. Part of that market involves sleep supplements like melatonin, as well as the herbal based ashwagandha. While I pull out the former when I fear an oncoming insomnia onslaught, I know several people who have been taking melatonin nightly for years (unfortunately for them, this probably isn’t a great idea). And a friend of mine swears by the anxiety and stress-relieving benefits of ashwagandha that help her fall into a quick slumber.
