Melatonin tagged posts

Sleep isn’t just a luxury, it’s a vital process that helps our bodies repair and rejuvenate. Researchers have started to uncover how the quality and timing of sleep can affect more than just how rested we feel—it might also affect the very blueprint of our cells: our DNA.

A new study from Canada found that melatonin, a hormone known for its role in regulating sleep, might help reverse some of the DNA damage caused by years of poor sleep.

Melatonin is produced by the pineal gland in our brains when darkness falls. It signals to our bodies that it’s time to wind down and prepare for sleep. Beyond its sleep-inducing properties, melatonin is also a powerful antioxidant.

Antioxidants help protect our cells from oxidative stress—a condition in which an imbalance between free radi...

Study links exposure to nighttime artificial lights with elevated thyroid cancer risk. People living in regions with high levels of outdoor artificial light at night may face a higher risk of developing thyroid cancer. The finding comes from a study published early online in CANCER, a peer-reviewed journal of the American Cancer Society.

Over the past century, nightscapes — especially in cities — have drastically changed due to the rapid growth of electric lighting. Also, epidemiological studies have reported an association between higher satellite-measured levels of nighttime light and elevated breast cancer risk...

Sustained release of melatonin: A novel approach in elevating efficacy of tamoxifen in breast cancer treatment

Tiny bubbles filled with the sleep hormone melatonin can make breast cancer treatment more effective, which means people need a lower dose, giving them less severe side effects. The bubbles, called nanostructured lipid carriers (NLCs), made tamoxifen stronger and help it kill cancer cells. The authors of the study, from Tabriz University of Medical Sciences in Iran, say using NLCs packed with melatonin could also help avoid the cancer cells growing resistant to the treatment, so it will remain effective.

More than 224,000 people were diagnosed with breast cancer in 2012 in the US alone...

Distribution of the 40 nonsynonymous MT2 variants identified by exon resequencing.

New light has been shed on why people who carry a common genetic melatonin receptor mutation may be more at risk for developing type 2 diabetes. By carefully studying healthy subjects, researchers were able to chart the effect of melatonin supplements on blood sugar control. Their results suggest that taking melatonin close to mealtimes may put people with a common genetic variant more at risk.

As many as 50% of people of European ancestry carry this genetic variation in MTNR1B, a gene that encodes a melatonin receptor...