Abstract
Sleep is vital for maintaining health and well-being; however, insomnia is currently a widespread health complaint. According to a report from the National Sleep Foundation in the United States, 87% of American adults experience sleeping problems. Recently, natural sleep aids have become increasingly popular as an alternative to prescription sleep medications for the treatment of insomnia. Various dietary and herbal supplements, such as valerian, suanzaoren, kava kava, and 5-hydroxytryptophan are used for treating insomnia. Polyphenols are a major type of hypnotic phytochemicals present in these supplements, and the gamma-aminobutyric acid type A (GABAA) receptor has been extensively studied as a molecular target of hypnotic polyphenols. Terrestrial plant polyphenols, such as magnolol, honokiol, and glabrol, reportedly have hypnotic effects via positive allosteric modulation of the GABAA-benzodiazepine (BZD) receptor. Marine plant polyphenol phlorotannins also have sleep-promoting effects via the GABAA-BZD receptor. This chapter discusses information related to the properties and potential mechanisms of natural sleep aids and hypnotic polyphenols.
Keywords
- insomnia;
- natural sleep aid;
- hypnotic;
- sleep-promoting;
- polyphenol;
- flavonoid;
- phlorotannin;
- GABAA receptor;
- benzodiazepine
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