Early morning melatonin administration impairs psychomotor vigilance

The acute soporific effect of melatonin in humans has been demonstrated in a range of studies. How alertness and performance are changed after melatonin given in the morning is not yet known. In a double-blind, placebo-controlled study of nine healthy young men, melatonin was given at 0700 h under controlled conditions of a modified constant routine protocol lasting 56 h (2 days, 3 nights with sleep). A clear decrement in neurobehavioral functions as measured by the Psychomotor Vigilance Test lasted for 6 h after melatonin administration (particularly in the lapse domain and median of the reaction time) without any effect on a letter cancellation task. A subjective soporific effect was present but less pronounced. Thus, melatonin taken in the morning requires caution in situations where high attention is needed.