Nutritional modulators of sleep: A narrative review of vitamins, minerals, amino acids, and their neurobiological and chronoepigenetic mechanisms.
Level 5 - mechanism / opinion, no new human data
Narrative review synthesizing mechanistic and neurobiological literature without systematic methodology or primary human data.
PubMed 41992896 · doi:10.1080/07420528.2026.2648011
What was done
This narrative review synthesized evidence on the neurobiological, circadian, and chronoepigenetic pathways through which vitamins, minerals, and amino acids modulate sleep. Nutrients examined include B-group vitamins (B6, B12, folate), vitamin D, minerals (magnesium, calcium, iron, zinc), and amino acids (tryptophan, glycine, GABA).
What was found
The abstract reports qualitative mechanistic relationships and provides no quantitative data or effect sizes. Key described mechanisms include: B-group vitamins acting as cofactors for serotonin and GABA synthesis to lower neuronal excitability; vitamin D regulating clock gene expression, melatonin secretion, and neuroinflammation via nuclear receptors; magnesium and calcium enhancing GABAergic tone and enzyme activity to promote slow-wave sleep; iron and zinc influencing dopaminergic circuits, with iron supplementation reducing restless-leg syndrome and sleep fragmentation; tryptophan promoting serotonin and melatonin synthesis to decrease sleep latency; inhibitory amino acids (glycine, GABA) increasing central nervous system inhibition; and folate and B12 participating in the epigenetic methylation of clock genes.
Why it matters
It provides a biochemical framework linking micronutrients and amino acids to sleep architecture and circadian biology, suggesting pathways for future personalized nutritional interventions.
Limits
As a narrative review, it lacks systematic search criteria, quality appraisal, and meta-analytic pooling. The abstract provides no quantitative effect sizes, clinical dosages, or details regarding the specific human populations studied, and notes the need for larger controlled trials.
Cited by
- supports Glycine promotes inhibitory neurotransmission to support sleep.