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Its colour is a seductive ruby-red. It fizzes gently like the frothy lip of the sea on the shore. Take a sip and this elixir will usher you to the realm of dreams and keep you asleep until dawn.
So goes the promise of the Sleepy Girl Mocktail. The viral concoction of tart cherry juice, magnesium and bubbling seltzer or soda water has thousands of sleep-starved TikTokers swearing by its soporific power.
Videos of TikTokers brewing the Sleepy Girl Mocktail have racked up millions of views.Credit: TikTok
Tart cherries contain melatonin, a common – if misunderstood – hormone commonly used as a sleep supplement. One 2010 study found cherry juice modestly reduced the amount of time insomnia patients stayed awake. A 2018 study found the juice increased sleep time by 84 minutes.
But these studies, frequently cited in the media, were conducted over a fortnight and had only 15 and eight participants, respectively. If you can fit your sample size in a demountable classroom, you probably shouldn’t give much credence to the study results.
As for magnesium, a few small studies have shown it has a modest sleep-boosting effect. But meta analyses have identified substandard research quality and contradictory findings within these studies.
So what’s with the Sleepy Girl Mocktail hype?
“Everything works for about a week, right?” says Dr Alexander Sweetman, who studies insomnia treatments at Flinders University. “It’s this really strong placebo effect – people expect their sleep will improve with this cherry juice, or mouth taping, or holding one eye open and one eye closed. And then, because the psychological and behavioral factors are still there and haven’t been targeted and treated, long-term insomnia almost always returns.”
The truth about the Sleepy Girl Mocktail and other insomnia ‘cures’
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23.01.2024
Examine, a free weekly newsletter covering science with a sceptical, evidence-based eye, is sent every Tuesday. You’re reading an excerpt – sign up to get the whole newsletter in your inbox.
Its colour is a seductive ruby-red. It fizzes gently like the frothy lip of the sea on the shore. Take a sip and this elixir will usher you to the realm of dreams and keep you asleep until dawn.
So goes the promise of the Sleepy Girl Mocktail. The viral concoction of tart........
© The Sydney Morning Herald
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