WHAT IS MELATONIN?
Melatonin is a hormone produced by the pineal gland, which is a pea size structure in the centre of the brain. The secretion of melatonin occurs during the night in response to darkness. It reaches a maximum level in the middle of the night, then decreases in the morning.
HOW DOES MELATONIN WORK?
Melatonin regulates and controls our biological clock: it improves sleep, stimulates the immune system, regulates body temperature and protects the central nervous system. In in-vitro studies, melatonin has been shown to inhibit cancer cell growth, including breast and prostate cancer. Melatonin is an extremely powerful antioxidant which protects each part of the cell and each cell of your body. Oxidation is also one of the main factors of the process of ageing itself. In fact, melatonin can be a most effective product for health promotion, and one of the least expensive that exists.
MELATONIN SUPPLEMENT AND ITS BENEFITS
Melatonin is made by specialised compounding chemists identical to the hormone produced naturally in your body.
Against insomnia - Melatonin is natural and healthy inducer of sleep. It is effective in one hour for 90% of people. The sleep facilitated by melatonin is natural, repairing, and one of better quality than the sleep induced by common sleeping pills. The users of melatonin awake always fresh and well rested.
Melatonin is particularly effective to get rid of jet lag (time shift) and the disorders of the circadian rhythm which result from night work by resetting your internal body clock.
The same applies to Seasonal Emotional Disorder which effects the people whose biorhythms cannot adapt to the changes of seasons.
Melatonin neutralises the effects of stress, and reduces the gradual decrease in the immune system which accompanies it.
Many studies show that melatonin protects from cancer and the toxic effects of chemotherapy. It restores the functionality of the thymus and increases the production of T lymphocytes (one of your body's infection and cancer fighting mechanisms. Research also shows that supplements of melatonin make it easier to reduce hypertension, to better assist colds, and more generally, to prevent and to resist a great number of diseases associated with ageing.
ARE THERE ANY SIDE EFFECTS?
Melatonin supplements are remarkably safe as it is identical to your bodies own hormone. A study carried out in Holland on a population of 5,000 women has just shown that melatonin, even in significant quantity and for a long time can be used without danger. No unfavourable effects were noted.
MELATONIN OR SLEEPING PILLS?
Contrary to sleeping pills, melatonin, in recommended amounts, induces a natural sleep and resynchronizes the circadian rhythm. It improves the speed at which one falls asleep as well as the duration and quality of sleep. Melatonin creates neither habit nor dependence. You will dream more, which is a sign of deep restful sleep. In contrast, sleeping pills remove the essential phase of the sleep devoted to dream, often require an intake of increasingly high amounts, create a terrible dependence, and can cause a hang over effect.
WHAT IS THE RECOMMENDED DOSAGE?
The individual needs vary significantly: 2 to 3 mg is generally enough to induce sleep. If you did not sleep sufficiently, you can increase the dose. It will take a small period to work out what dose is correct for you. Patients with sever insomnia will need a higher dose. Patients coming off sleeping pills will require an adjustment phase for their body clocks to be re-established.
WHO SHOULD NOT TAKE MELATONIN?
Women who are pregnant or nursing (since no one knows how exposure to the hormone might affect a fetus or infant); people with severe allergies or auto-immune diseases (melatonin could exacerbate such conditions by stimulating the immune system); people with immune-system cancers, such as lymphoma or leukemia (for the same reason); children (who already produce it in abundance). As with any substance introduced into your body, if you have a medical condition you should always consult your physician first before taking melatonin.
WILL MELATONIN EXTEND MY LIFESPAN?
There are no human studies to support this contention. In tests on both rats and mice, melatonin caused a significant increase in their lifespan. If melatonin does allow you to live longer and healthier, it could do so because melatonin may reduce free radical damage to the cells membrane, stimulate an aging immune system, protect the cardiovascular system, preserve a youthful circadian rhythm or stimulate the production of growth hormones. It is one of the rare anti-oxidants to be both water and lipid soluble and it is a better anti-oxidant than vitamin E.
HOW TO BE SURE TO HAVE GOOD QUALITY MELATONIN
Natural, animal, or bovine grade melatonin contains the actual extracts of the pineal gland. Because it comes from animal tissue, this grade of melatonin may be accompanied by viruses or proteins that could cause an antibody response. We highly recommend that people stay away from it.
The alternative is synthetic or pharmaceutical grade melatonin, which is produced from pharmaceutical grade ingredients. This form is identical to the melatonin produced in our own bodies, without unwanted extras. Melatonin is available in Australia in its pure form by prescription from doctors experienced in its use.
OTHER SUGGESTIONS TO IMPROVE SLEEP
1. Avoid bright light at night (e.g. watching TV in bed) and reduce exposure to electromagnetic fields (electric blankets).
2. Avoid use of melatonin-lowering substances (caffeine, tobacco, alcohol).
3. Modify exercise routine to avoid strenuous exercise in the evenings, especially 3 hours before bedtime.
4. Consider eating foods high in melatonin or the melatonin precursor Tryptophan(oats, sweet corn, rice, ginger, tomatoes, bananas, barley, Japanese radish, spirulina, soy, cottage cheese, chicken meat/liver, turkey, pepitas, almonds, peanuts, brewer's yeast, malted milk, milk, ice cream, yogurt).
5. Consider enhancing your own melatonin production with supplements of Niacinamide, B6, calcium and magnesium.
6. Avoid large doses of vit B-12 (3 mg per day), which may cause a significant decrease in melatonin levels.
7. Sleep in "pitch" darkness so your body produces more Melatonin, even the bedside clock emits too much light, your eyes, even closed, are very sensitive. | 
