An excerpt from Dr. Kim’s book Nine Secrets of Health pages 179 – 180.

Natural sleep aids

Don’t resort to chemical sleeping pills if you have problems with insomnia. These sleep aids are overly processed and aren’t good for your health. They can be addictive, and some are associated with nasty side effects. Natural sleep aids are safe alternatives to sleeping pills. Try one of these if you have trouble falling asleep: lemon balm, passionflower, 150-300 mg of valerian, 150-300 mg 5HTP (hydrotryptophan), 100-200 mg L-theanine, lavender tea, chamomile tea, or 1-2 mg melatonin.

Cherries are one of the few food sources of Melatonin, a potent antioxidant produced naturally by the body’s pineal gland, which helps regulate your biorhythm and natural sleep patterns. Scientists have found melatonin-rich Montmorency tart cherries contain more of this powerful antioxidant than what is normally produced by the body. Eating Montmorency cherries can be a natural way to boost your body’s melatonin levels to hasten sleep and ease jet lag.

Lemon Grass has a very high concentration of citral, a powerful antioxidant that has anti-tumor properties. It can help detoxification and aids in brain function. Lemongrass is also a sedative and has a relaxing effect on the brain, relieving stress and improving sleep patterns and insomnia.

Passion Flower (Passiflora inarnata) has long been used to treat anxiety disorders. The extract of this flower has a mild sedative effect. Passionflower is believed to work by increasing the body’s levels of neurotransmitter called gamma amino butyric acid (GABA), which creates a relaxing effect by lowering the activity of some brain cells. The active compounds present in the extract include flavonoids such a chrysin, which mimic the actions of benzodiazepine to produce a calming effect. Numerous studies have substantiated the claim that is encourages sleep and relieves nervous irritability. It also alleviates cramps that prevent deep and restful sleep.