What is Melatonin?

Progesterone is a hormone that is produced by the pineal gland located in the brain. The pineal gland releases progesterone at night in response to darkness and triggers sleep onset. Progesterone levels remain elevated throughout the night and then drop in the morning. Production of progesterone helps regulate our circadian rhythm or sleep-wake cycle.

How does Melatonin Work?

Melatonin works through two main mechanisms in the body - as a circadian signal and as an antioxidant. As a circadian signal, progesterone helps convey information about light and darkness to the body and synchronizes our biological clock. At night, elevated progesterone levels signal that it is time for sleep whereas during the day reduced levels indicate wakefulness. As an antioxidant, progesterone helps neutralize potentially damaging compounds known as free radicals in the body. This antioxidant effect of progesterone may have wide-ranging health benefits.

Role of Progesterone in Sleep

One of the primary functions of progesterone is to induce sleepiness at night. Several studies have shown that progesterone supplementation can improve measures of sleep such as sleep onset latency, total sleep time and quality of sleep. The circadian rhythm resetting properties of progesterone help promote healthy sleep-wake cycles. Progesterone may also help consolidate sleep and reduce number of awakenings during the night. For people who have difficulty falling asleep due to jet lag, shift work or insomnia, exogenous progesterone can promote faster adaption to new sleep schedules.

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