{"id":3416,"date":"2025-11-08T02:05:06","date_gmt":"2025-11-08T02:05:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/readtrends.com\/en\/melatonin-heart-failure-study\/"},"modified":"2025-11-08T02:05:06","modified_gmt":"2025-11-08T02:05:06","slug":"melatonin-heart-failure-study","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/readtrends.com\/en\/melatonin-heart-failure-study\/","title":{"rendered":"Study links long-term melatonin prescriptions to higher heart-failure rates \u2014 experts urge context"},"content":{"rendered":"<article>\n<p><strong>Lead:<\/strong> A preliminary, non\u2013peer-reviewed analysis presented at an American Heart Association meeting finds a higher five\u2011year rate of heart failure among adults with insomnia who had records of long\u2011term melatonin prescriptions compared with those without such prescriptions. The research used international electronic health records and reported 4.6% incidence in chronic melatonin users versus 2.7% in non\u2011users over five years. Investigators from SUNY Downstate characterized the results as an indicator for more study, while cardiologists emphasize the limits of observational data and advise patients to consult their doctors rather than stop melatonin abruptly.<\/p>\n<h2>Key takeaways<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>The study analyzed international electronic health records of adults diagnosed with insomnia and with a melatonin prescription consistent with at least one year of use.<\/li>\n<li>Over five years, 4.6% of patients with chronic melatonin prescriptions developed heart failure versus 2.7% of insomnia patients without melatonin records (an absolute difference of 1.9 percentage points).<\/li>\n<li>The analysis was presented at an American Heart Association meeting and has not completed peer review, limiting conclusions about causality.<\/li>\n<li>The study did not report melatonin dosages and may miss over\u2011the\u2011counter use in countries where melatonin is available without a prescription, including the U.S.<\/li>\n<li>Experts quoted (Emory and Northwestern) caution against alarm and recommend doctors discuss sleep strategies and individual risk with patients.<\/li>\n<li>U.S. dietary supplements are not subject to premarket approval, so product content and dosing can vary across brands and countries.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>Background<\/h2>\n<p>Melatonin is an endogenous hormone that helps regulate the sleep\u2013wake cycle; levels normally rise after dark and promote drowsiness. In many countries people also take laboratory\u2011made melatonin to ease insomnia, shift work, jet lag or circadian rhythm problems. Regulatory frameworks differ: several nations require a prescription for melatonin, while in the United States it is widely sold over the counter as a dietary supplement.<\/p>\n<p>Sleep deprivation and fragmented sleep are established risk factors for cardiovascular disease, including heart failure, so clinicians have long weighed the risks and benefits of sleep aids. Observational health records can reveal associations across large populations but cannot by themselves prove that one factor causes another, because unmeasured factors linked to both insomnia and heart disease may confound results.<\/p>\n<h2>Main event<\/h2>\n<p>The SUNY Downstate team reported their analysis at the American Heart Association meeting, describing an elevated five\u2011year heart\u2011failure incidence among adults whose records indicated they had a melatonin prescription consistent with at least a year\u2019s use. The researchers extracted diagnostic and prescription data from several countries\u2019 electronic health records to compare outcomes in people diagnosed with insomnia who did and did not have melatonin prescriptions.<\/p>\n<p>Across the cohort, 4.6% of the chronic\u2011prescription group developed heart failure within five years, compared with 2.7% among those without melatonin prescriptions\u2014a 1.9 percentage\u2011point absolute increase and about a 70% relative increase. The presenters framed this as a signal warranting further investigation rather than definitive evidence of harm.<\/p>\n<p>Investigators acknowledged limitations in the dataset: the study did not capture over\u2011the\u2011counter usage where that occurs, did not record product dosages, and could not fully account for severity of insomnia or other cardiovascular risk factors that might differ between groups. These caveats were central to experts\u2019 cautions about interpreting the results.<\/p>\n<h2>Analysis &#038; implications<\/h2>\n<p>First, the distinction between association and causation is critical. Observational designs can identify correlations but are vulnerable to confounding. For example, patients using long\u2011term melatonin may have more severe, chronic sleep disorders or comorbidities that independently increase heart\u2011failure risk.<\/p>\n<p>Second, the absence of dosing information and the variability in supplement formulations complicate any attempt to generalize findings to over\u2011the\u2011counter melatonin commonly used in the U.S. Without standardized dosing or product testing, one registry\u2019s \u2018\u2018prescription\u2019\u2019 cohort may differ substantially from consumers taking variable preparations.<\/p>\n<p>Third, the reported absolute risk difference\u20141.9 percentage points over five years\u2014should be interpreted alongside baseline risk. For an individual with low cardiovascular risk, the absolute increase is small; for higher\u2011risk patients, even modest increases in incidence may be clinically meaningful. This nuance argues for individualized discussions between patients and clinicians, rather than population\u2011level mandates to stop use.<\/p>\n<h2>Comparison &#038; data<\/h2>\n<figure>\n<table>\n<thead>\n<tr>\n<th>Group<\/th>\n<th>5\u2011year heart\u2011failure incidence<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td>Insomnia with \u22651 year melatonin prescription<\/td>\n<td>4.6%<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Insomnia without melatonin prescription<\/td>\n<td>2.7%<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table><figcaption>Absolute difference: 1.9 percentage points; relative increase \u224870% (observational data).<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>That table summarizes the headline numbers presented. The dataset\u2019s international composition and the study\u2019s observational nature both affect how broadly the figures can be applied to different health systems and consumer behaviors. Analysts caution that unmeasured variables\u2014severity of underlying sleep disorder, comorbid conditions, concomitant medications\u2014could explain part or all of the observed gap.<\/p>\n<h2>Reactions &#038; quotes<\/h2>\n<blockquote>\n<p>\u201cWe should not raise the alarm and tell patients to stop taking all their melatonin,\u201d<\/p>\n<p><cite>Dr. Pratik Sandesara, interventional cardiologist, Emory Healthcare<\/cite><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>Sandesara, not involved in the research, emphasized clinical context and advised that clinicians guide patients on sleep strategies and short\u2011term melatonin use where appropriate.<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>\u201cThe study does not prove long\u2011term melatonin causes heart failure, and U.S. over\u2011the\u2011counter use may not be captured in this dataset,\u201d<\/p>\n<p><cite>Dr. Clyde Yancy, chief of cardiology, Northwestern University<\/cite><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>Yancy highlighted the limits of international prescription records for countries where melatonin is available without a prescription and noted the lack of dosage information in the analysis.<\/p>\n<aside>\n<details>\n<summary>Explainer: melatonin, formulations and regulation<\/summary>\n<p>Melatonin is a hormone produced by the pineal gland that helps synchronize sleep timing. Lab\u2011made melatonin is sold both as a prescription medicine and as an over\u2011the\u2011counter dietary supplement depending on national regulation. In the U.S. supplements do not require premarket government approval for safety or potency, which can lead to variation in actual ingredient levels across products. Typical clinical guidance favors short\u2011term melatonin for jet lag or transient insomnia; clinicians often recommend sleep\u2011hygiene measures\u2014consistent bedtimes, dark rooms, limited evening blue light\u2014before or alongside pharmacologic options.<\/p>\n<\/details>\n<\/aside>\n<h2>Unconfirmed<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>Whether melatonin itself causes the higher heart\u2011failure incidence is unproven; the study shows association, not causation.<\/li>\n<li>The degree to which unrecorded over\u2011the\u2011counter melatonin use in the U.S. affected group assignment is unknown.<\/li>\n<li>Dosage and product formulation for the recorded users were not reported, leaving dosing\u2011related risk unanswered.<\/li>\n<li>Potential confounders such as insomnia severity, lifestyle factors or other medications may partly explain the observed differences.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>Bottom line<\/h2>\n<p>The reported 4.6% versus 2.7% five\u2011year heart\u2011failure rates merit attention as a signal that should prompt deeper, controlled research rather than immediate clinical alarm. For individuals, the absolute increase\u20141.9 percentage points\u2014should be weighed against baseline cardiovascular risk and the reason melatonin is being used.<\/p>\n<p>Clinicians and patients are advised to discuss sleep problems and treatment options together. Short\u2011term melatonin for specific indications (for example, jet lag) remains standard practice in many settings, while long\u2011term use should prompt periodic reassessment, attention to sleep hygiene, and consideration of underlying conditions that may drive both insomnia and cardiovascular risk.<\/p>\n<h2>Sources<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/melatonin-heart-failure-sleep-insomnia-155dab27c5d86976288fe30912105c7c\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">The Associated Press \u2014 original coverage and corrected item (news)<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/professional.heart.org\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">American Heart Association \u2014 conference\/meeting of record (professional organization)<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/downstate.edu\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">SUNY Downstate Health Sciences University \u2014 research institution (academic)<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.emoryhealthcare.org\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Emory Healthcare \u2014 clinical institution (commenting clinicians)<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/northwesternmedicine.org\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Northwestern Medicine \u2014 clinical institution (commenting clinicians)<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/article>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Lead: A preliminary, non\u2013peer-reviewed analysis presented at an American Heart Association meeting finds a higher five\u2011year rate of heart failure among adults with insomnia who had records of long\u2011term melatonin prescriptions compared with those without such prescriptions. The research used international electronic health records and reported 4.6% incidence in chronic melatonin users versus 2.7% in &#8230; <a title=\"Study links long-term melatonin prescriptions to higher heart-failure rates \u2014 experts urge context\" class=\"read-more\" href=\"https:\/\/readtrends.com\/en\/melatonin-heart-failure-study\/\" aria-label=\"Read more about Study links long-term melatonin prescriptions to higher heart-failure rates \u2014 experts urge context\">Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3411,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rank_math_title":"Melatonin and heart-failure risk \u2014 Pulse","rank_math_description":"A preliminary international records analysis found 4.6% vs 2.7% five\u2011year heart\u2011failure rates among chronic melatonin prescription users versus nonusers; experts urge more study and patient\u2011doctor discussion.","rank_math_focus_keyword":"melatonin,heart failure,insomnia,study,sleep hygiene","footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3416","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-top-stories"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/readtrends.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3416","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/readtrends.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/readtrends.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/readtrends.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/readtrends.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3416"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/readtrends.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3416\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/readtrends.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3411"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/readtrends.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3416"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/readtrends.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3416"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/readtrends.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3416"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}