Q:
Can melatonin be taken nasally?
I sometimes take melatonin to help me get to sleep. I have a hard time getting to sleep most nights so melatonin helps my body relax.
I take 3mg tablets (1 to 2) with the following ingredients listed on the bottle:
Dicalcium Phosphate, Cellulose (Plant Origin), Vegetable Magnesium Stearate, Vegetable Stearic Acid, Silica, Croscarmellose
If I were to ground these tablets up and take them in through my nose, would there be any negative results? Would the melatonin work faster?
A:
We don't recommend administering any medication (or recreational drug for that matter) intranasally if it is not specifically formulated for that purpose. It can be caustic to the nasal mucosal lining, leading to irritation, bleeding and potentially septal injury.
There is little advantage time wise of using a medication nasally. It is usually absorbed from the intestinal tract within 20 minutes so timing your night time dose makes the most sense.
~The Doc
