A recent article in the research journal called Psychopharmacalogy has explained the usefulness of L-Tryptophan in inducing sleep. Primary research shows that L-Tryptophan induces sleep when administered in 1 to 15 grams dose. L-Tryptophan is found in large quantities in turkey. Scientists were inquisitive about the sleep inducing effect consuming turkey had on many of their patients. They decided to have a deeper look and found that L-Tryptophan was the cause. This natural supplement has the capability to induce a relaxing mood as well as induce drowsiness. However, to ensure that there are no side effects involved, more research is being conducted.

Hormones naturally secreted by the human body such as melatonin are responsible for inducing sleep in the human body. Melatonin is produced by the pineal gland and is responsible for regulating the circadian rhythm. Latest research has shown that melatonin can be given to patients suffering from insomnia. The prescribed dosage is between 0.3 to 5 mg. However, clinical trials amongst patients have produced side effects like headache and depression etc. Melatonin, therefore, needs to be researched for its possible efficacy and also for reducing its side effects.

There are many medicinal herbs that are now available as over the counter products at medical stores that have shown the potential to treat insomnia. The way in which these herbs are said to be working is that they stimulate the neural cells in the brain to produce sleep inducing hormones. This has not been conclusively proved by studies. Research is still being carried out. However herbs like Valeria, Panax and Passiflora are known for not having side effects and, therefore, continue to be consumed by patients who think it to be beneficial.

Americans have always used the acupuncture technique as a treatment for chronic pain. However, lately, scientists have discovered that ancient Chinese methods do exist where acupuncture was used as a cure for insomnia. Of late, Chinese scientists have started working on creating an acupuncture based alternative therapy for treating insomnia. Many articles can be found in recent medical journals in China regarding attempts to cure insomnia with acupuncture. Acupuncture helps in treating insomnia by producing analgesia. Recent studies have shown that the usage of ear, scalp and body acupuncture points was able to produce an improvement in the quality of sleep for patients suffering with chronic insomnia.

However, given the fact that acupuncture is delivered to every patient in an individualized manner, it is difficult to undertake controlled studies. However, more research in this direction will definitely be helpful given the fact that acupuncture produces absolutely no side effects in the human body.

LEET is a relatively nascent concept in the field of insomnia treatment. It uses low levels of amplitude modulated radio frequency electromagnetic waves to treat insomnia. These electromagnetic waves are delivered to the human brain in a controlled manner. How these waves help in producing the sleep inducing effect is not clearly understood till now. However, primary studies have concluded that 12 LEET sessions delivered over a 4 week period have significantly improved the sleep quality of patients. However, since the process is not well understood, side effects are unknown and, hence, more research is required.