This Group of Vitamins Is Essential to Good Sleep

by Chris D. Meletis, ND

We all know what it takes to get ready for a test or big life event; it takes concentration and focus. What that means in biochemistry talk is that the correct brain chemistry needs to be present to accomplish grand performance. Likewise, sleep is a unique and highly chemistry dependent event that must be properly fueled each and every day. Sleep is a life-sustaining necessity, and if we fail to get sufficient sleep we lack quality of life and overall health is affected.

B vitamins are integral to several dozen biochemical pathways throughout the human body including supporting sleep. I have found that often patients who don’t routinely remember their dreams do splendidly when they take a high quality B complex. Often they will return to the office reporting that they are starting to remember their dreams more routinely.

Clinically, the first key step to supplementing with B vitamins is to ensure that they are taken prior to noon with food. Taken too late in the day can have a stimulatory effect. Let’s take a look at some of the ways B vitamins support sleep. It is important to remember of course that B vitamins generally work best in the presence of the other B vitamins, as they offer synergy and can support the production of bioactive forms.

• Vitamin B3 has been shown to enhance REM sleep and can also support a healthy mood during waking hours in some cases and a decrease in nighttime awakenings.
• Vitamin B6 has been shown to be crucial for the production of serotonin, along with 5-HTP. This is why many of my patients will use 5-HTP prior to bed to support healthy sleep.
• Folic acid is also vitally important. It has been shown to often be low amongst individuals with trouble sleeping consistently. Often my patients will add a little extra Active MTHF, in the form of MTHF (methyltetrahydrofolate), to augment the effect if a solid B complex doesn’t completely get the job done.

In addition to B vitamins, I also will often insure that calcium, magnesium and vitamin D levels are optimal. A little extra calcium and magnesium can do wonders from my experience in supporting sleep and at the same time relieving some of the muscle tension and soreness of modern daily existence. That alone can help us get asleep and stay asleep. It is important for all of us to remember that “we must sleep well in order to be well.”