Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to raise awareness of the potential long term effects of melatonin usage.

In the United Kingdom, melatonin must be prescribed by a healthcare professional. Melatonin is authorised for a number of indications which specify short term use. For indications that may require longer term use, such as insomnia in children and adolescents aged six to 17 years old with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, where sleep hygiene measures have been insufficient, there is advice to regularly review treatment, at least every six months, and that during treatment, especially if the treatment effect is uncertain, treatment should be interrupted, stopped briefly, once per year to check whether the treatment is still needed.

The product information provides information to support the use of melatonin, including warnings about possible interactions with other medication as well as details of possible side effects.

The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency continuously monitors the safety of all medicines on the UK market, including melatonin, and will take appropriate regulatory action if new safety issues are identified.