Millions of people live with long-lasting muscle and joint pain caused by conditions such as osteoarthritis, back pain, and fibromyalgia. This type of pain can make it difficult to walk, work, exercise, or even sleep.
Many people rely on pain medicines such as opioids, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), or paracetamol.
While these medicines can help, some carry risks when used for a long time, including stomach problems, kidney damage, addiction, or reduced effectiveness over time.
Because of these concerns, researchers continue searching for safer ways to manage chronic pain.
A new study from the University of Sydney suggests that melatonin, a supplement best known for helping people sleep, may also reduce chronic musculoskeletal pain. The findings were published in the journal PAIN.
Melatonin is a hormone naturally produced by the brain, mainly at night. It helps control the body’s sleep-wake cycle. Many people take melatonin to treat insomnia or jet lag because it helps the body prepare for sleep.
Scientists have also suspected that melatonin may reduce inflammation, affect pain signals, and improve sleep quality, all of which could help people living with chronic pain.
To investigate this idea, researchers analyzed data from 23 randomized controlled trials involving 2,028 adults from countries including the United States, Brazil, Russia, Egypt, and China.
Participants had a wide range of painful conditions, including chronic low back pain, osteoarthritis, fibromyalgia, and pain after surgery such as joint replacement or spinal operations.
The analysis found that melatonin reduced pain by about 9 to 10 points on a 100-point pain scale. According to the researchers, this amount of pain relief is similar to what has been reported for several commonly used pain medicines, including opioids, NSAIDs, and paracetamol.
Melatonin also improved sleep quality, an important finding because poor sleep and chronic pain often make each other worse.
Lead researcher Kangchao Wu explained that many people already have melatonin at home because it is inexpensive and has a good safety record. Professor Paulo Ferreira added that the study highlights the growing value of drug repurposing, which means finding new uses for medicines that are already well understood.
The studies included different doses of melatonin. Most people with chronic pain took between 3 and 10 mg before bedtime, while people recovering from surgery often took 5 to 6 mg. However, the researchers could not identify one ideal dose because higher doses did not consistently produce better results.
The review also found that melatonin was generally well tolerated. The most common side effects were mild nausea, dizziness, and headache, and these occurred at rates similar to placebo.
No serious safety problems or signs of dependence were reported. Even so, melatonin should only be taken after discussing it with a healthcare professional, especially for people taking other medicines or living with chronic illnesses.
Overall, this study provides encouraging evidence that melatonin may become a useful addition to chronic pain treatment, especially for people who also struggle with poor sleep.
However, the research does not suggest replacing standard pain medicines. Instead, melatonin may work best as part of a broader treatment plan that includes exercise, physical therapy, healthy sleep habits, and medical care.
The study has several strengths, including a large number of participants and high-quality clinical trials. However, the studies differed in pain conditions, melatonin doses, and treatment length, which means more large studies are still needed. The findings are promising but should be confirmed before melatonin becomes a routine treatment for chronic pain.
If you care about pain, please read studies about how to manage gout with a low-purine diet, and a guide to eating right for arthritis.
For more health information, please see recent studies about the link between processed foods and chronic diseases, and avoid these 8 foods to ease arthritis pain.
