Alert issued after melatonin sales suspended
01 Sep 2025
An online retailer has stopped selling melatonin in Australia, sparking fresh warnings about the risks of using the hormone supplement in children.
The American supplement website iHerb has suspended sales of melatonin, including popular gummy products, after a big increase in reports of overdoses among children.
Figures show the Western Australian Poisons Information Centre received 322 calls about melatonin overdoses as of August 2025 – almost double the number recorded in 2018. Most involved children eating too many gummies, mistaking them for lollies. The NSW Poisons Information Centre has also reported a rise in calls.
Dr Tim Jones, Chair of the RACGP Specific Interests Child and Young Person’s Health group, says the situation is serious.
“Melatonin is a hormone, not a simple vitamin,” he said. “Kids are overdosing because they think gummies taste like lollies, and they want more.”
He warns that it is “only luck” that no Australian children have died so far, pointing to US research that linked melatonin overdoses to several child deaths.
Rise in unsupervised use
Dr Jones said more parents are buying melatonin online and giving it to children without medical advice.
“In the past, families came to me first about their child’s sleep issues,” he said. “Now many arrive already using melatonin and then ask for support.”
He urged parents and doctors to treat sleep struggles as a normal part of childhood, not a reason to turn straight to medication.
“Most kids don’t actually need melatonin. We have plenty of proven, practical strategies to help families manage sleep problems without medication – and these set children up for healthy sleep long-term.”
Concerns about gummies and quality
Dr Jones is worried about the trend of making medicines look like sweets.
“It trivialises the seriousness of medication,” he said, comparing melatonin gummies to lolly-like forms of medicinal cannabis.
He also questioned the safety of online products, with studies showing melatonin supplements can contain anywhere between 1% and 1000% of what is listed on the label. This may explain why children can seem very drowsy one night and unaffected the next.
Cost pressures on families
Prescription melatonin in Australia is more expensive than online versions, which Dr Jones acknowledged is a challenge during a cost-of-living crisis – especially for families with autistic children who may genuinely need it.
But he stressed that for most children, sleep problems are temporary and normal.
“About 30% of preschool children will struggle with sleep at some stage,” he said. “This has always been true. Parents need to feel confident in non-medication strategies to support their children.”
Source: Racpg