Recent Longevity News for the seven days ending 8/4/10.  You should consult your doctor if you are taking any medications.

Olive oil extract shows brain protecting benefits - Nutra USA, 8/3/10 - "the olive oil compound reduced the cell damaging effects of the oxidative and nitrosative stress in a dose-dependent manner, with higher doses providing increased protection" - [Abstract] - See olive leaf extract at Amazon.com.

Resveratrol’s anti-inflammatory power gets human data boost - Nutra USA, 8/3/10 - "The results demonstrated in the research are the first time that such findings have been seen in humans, but are consistent with potential antiatherogenic and antiaging effects of resveratrol. Concluding that PCE “has a comprehensive suppressive effect on oxidative and inflammatory stress.”" -[Abstract] - See resveratrol products at Amazon.com.

Chili peppers may come with blood pressure benefits - Science Daily, 8/3/10 - "We found that long-term dietary consumption of capsaicin, one of the most abundant components in chili peppers, could reduce blood pressure in genetically hypertensive rats" - See capsaicin supplements at Amazon.com.

Gum inflammation linked to Alzheimer's disease - Science Daily, 8/3/10 - "cognitively normal subjects with periodontal inflammation are at an increased risk of lower cognitive function compared to cognitively normal subjects with little or no periodontal inflammation ... subjects with Alzheimer's disease had a significantly higher level of antibodies and inflammatory molecules associated with periodontal disease in their plasma compared to healthy people ... the Digit Symbol Test, or DST, a part of the standard measurement of adult IQ ... periodontal inflammation at age 70 was strongly associated with lower DST scores at age 70. Subjects with periodontal inflammation were nine times more likely to test in the lower range of the DST compared to subjects with little or no periodontal inflammation" - Note:  See my dental page.  Gum disease has been linked to several other heath conditions including diabetes and heart disease.  Over the years I've tried several methods for gum disease including floss, Periostat and Arestin and here is the only method that worked:

• Periogard - Needs a prescription but is usually available at you dentist for around $10.
• Sunstar Butler Proxabrush GUM Eez-Lok Handle
• Sunstar Butler Proxabrush GUM Eez-Lok Handle - a better model than the above
•  Sunstar Butler GUM Proxabrush Refill Ultra Wide (618) - use this wide brush for the back teeth
• Butler 612 Soft Picks or Butler Ultra-Fine - use these narrower brushes for the front teeth
• Soak the brush in the Periogard than run it between your teeth.  I do that by putting about a quarter inch of the  Periogard in a small glass.

Certain meat components may increase bladder cancer risk, study suggests - Science Daily, 8/2/10 - "People whose diets had the highest amount of total dietary nitrite (from all sources and not just from meat), as well as those whose diets had the highest amount of nitrate plus nitrite from processed meats had a 28 percent to 29 percent increased risk of developing bladder cancer compared with those who consumed the lowest amount of these compounds"

The following YouTube videos are interesting regarding telomeres and telomerase.   It claims that reproductive cells don’t age because they have a gene that produces the telomerase enzyme. The telomerase enzyme causes the telomeres that breaks off to be replaced. Telomerase can actually lengthen telomeres. The rest of the cells in our body also have the gene that produces the telomerase enzyme but that gene is turned off in those cells. They have found 33 drugs that causes that gene to turn on. Theoretically that should prevent the telomere from shortening and therefore prevent aging (and wrinkles).

YouTube - What's a Telomere and Why is it Important to the Aging Process – 10:10
YouTube - Part 2: Sierra Sciences CEO Bill Andrews, Ph.D. – 10:57

Also see my telomere page at http://www.qualitycounts.com/fptelomerase.html . You can slow the telomere shortening with things like vitamin D.

Calcium supplements play an important role in maintaining bone health, experts say - Science Daily, 7/29/10 - "The authors of the meta-analysis examined the effects of calcium supplements on the risk of cardiovascular events, concluding there is an increased risk, and calling for a reassessment of the role of calcium supplements for osteoporosis. According to CRN, these conclusions are dramatically overstated, considering the limitations of meta-analysis, in general, and this meta-analysis, specifically ... The authors characterize these findings as though all of the selected studies suggest increased risk. In fact, the opposite is true: most of the studies do not suggest increased risk ... these researchers are making sweeping judgments about the value of calcium supplements by only assessing a handful of handpicked studies ..." - Also see Industry : Calcium research “cherry picked” results - Nutra USA, 7/30/10.

Calcium supplements linked to increased risk of heart attack, study finds - Science Daily, 7/29/10 - "calcium supplements were associated with about a 30% increased risk of heart attack and smaller, non-significant, increases in the risk of stroke and mortality"

Plant compound resveratrol shown to suppresses inflammation, free radicals in humans - Science Daily, 7/29/10 - "Resveratrol, a popular plant extract shown to prolong life in yeast and lower animals due to its anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties, appears also to suppress inflammation in humans ... resveratrol has been shown to prolong life and to reduce the rate of aging in yeast, roundworms and fruit flies, actions thought to be affected by increased expression of a particular gene associated with longevity ... The compound also is thought to play a role in insulin resistance as well, a condition related to oxidative stress, which has a significant detrimental effect on overall health ... resveratrol suppressed the generation of free radicals, or reactive oxygen species, unstable molecules known to cause oxidative stress and release proinflammatory factors into the blood stream, resulting in damage to the blood vessel lining ... Blood samples from persons taking resveratrol also showed suppression of the inflammatory protein tumor necrosis factor (TNF) and other similar compounds that increase inflammation in blood vessels and interfere with insulin action, causing insulin resistance and the risk of developing diabetes" - See resveratrol products at Amazon.com.

Memory's master switch: Molecular power behind memory discovered - Science Daily, 7/29/10 - "Higher concentrations of GABA near a synapse induced a stronger activation of its receptors, weakening basal synapse strength. As a result, GABA makes this synapse more liable to the formation of new memories" - See GABA at Amazon.com.

Aging and longevity tied to specific brain region in mice - Science Daily, 7/28/10 - "mice with increased brain SIRT1 have internal mechanisms that make them use energy more efficiently, which helps them move around in search of food even after a long fast. This increased energy-efficiency could help delay aging and extend lifespan ... SIRT1 is at the center of a network that connects metabolism and aging" - Related articles on SIRT1:

• Sirtuin1 may boost memory and learning ability; Discovery could lead to new drugs to fight Alzheimer's, other neurological diseases - Science Daily, 7/11/10 - "Resveratrol, found in wine, has been touted as a life-span enhancer because it activates a group of enzymes known as sirtuins, which have gained fame in recent years for their ability to slow the aging process. Now MIT researchers report that Sirtuin1 -- a protein that in humans is encoded by the SIRT1 gene -- also promotes memory and brain flexibility ... We have now found that SIRT1 activity also promotes plasticity and memory"
• Slowing Aging: Anti-aging Pathway Enhances Cell Stress Response - Science Daily, 2/19/09 - "The researchers discovered a new molecular relationship critical to keeping cells healthy across a long span of time: a protein called SIRT1, important for caloric restriction and lifespan and activated by resveratrol, regulates heat shock factor 1 (HSF1), keeping it active. HSF1 in turn senses the presence of damaged proteins in the cell and elevates the expression of molecular chaperones to keep a cell's proteins in a folded, functional state. Regulation of this pathway has a direct beneficial effect to cells ... decrease in SIRT1 may help explain why protein misfolding diseases, such as Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, Huntington's and adult-onset diabetes, are diseases of aging"
• Drug 'tricks body to lose weight' - BBC News, 11/5/08 - "The drug SRT1720 - a chemical cousin of red wine extract resveratrol - targets the protein SIRT1, which is thought to combat ageing ... The French team from the University Louis Pasteur became interested in the SIRT1 protein after earlier studies showing resveratrol countered some effects of a high-calorie diet via SIRT1" - See resveratrol products at Amazon.com.
• Wine Compound Spurs Diabetes Research - WebMD, 11/29/07 - "In October, Chinese researchers reported that resveratrol curbs insulin resistance in mice. Insulin is a hormone that controls blood sugar. Insulin resistance can lead to type 2 diabetes ... Like resveratrol, the lab-made chemicals activate a gene called SIRT1, making the diabetic mice more sensitive to insulin ... the newly developed chemicals are 1,000 times more potent than resveratrol"
• RResveratrol regulates human adipocyte number and function in a Sirt1-dependent manner - Am J Clin Nutr. 2010 May 12 - "Taken together, our data suggest that resveratrol influences adipose tissue mass and function in a way that may positively interfere with the development of obesity-related comorbidities. Thus, our findings open up the new perspective that resveratrol-induced intracellular pathways could be a target for prevention or treatment of obesity-associated endocrine and metabolic adverse effects"
• Resveratrol Modulates Tumor Cell Proliferation and Protein Translation via SIRT1-Dependent AMPK Activation/a> - J Agric Food Chem. 2009 Nov 20 - &"Similar to those effects associated with caloric restriction (CR), resveratrol has multiple beneficial activities, such as increased life span and delay in the onset of diseases associated with aging ... Here, we show that resveratrol activated AMPK in both ER-positive and ER-negative breast cancer cells ... Here, we show that resveratrol activated AMPK in both ER-positive and ER-negative breast cancer cells. Once activated, AMPK inhibited 4E-BP1 signaling and mRNA translation via mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR). Moreover, we also found that AMPK activity mediated by resveratrol in cancer cells was due to inducing the expression of Sirtuin type 1 (SIRT1) via elevation in the cellular NAD(+)/NADH in ER-positive cells. To our knowledge, we demonstrate here for the first time that resveratrol induces the expression of SIRT1 protein in human cancer cells. These observations raise the possibility that SIRT1 functions as a novel upstream regulator for AMPK signaling and may additionally modulate tumor cell proliferation. Targeting SIRT1/AMPK signaling by resveratrol may have potential therapeutic implications for cancer and age-related diseases"
• Resveratrol inhibits the expression of SREBP1 in cell model of steatosis via Sirt1-FOXO1 signaling pathway - Biochem Biophys Res Commun. 2009 Mar 13;380(3):644-9 - "Our results suggest that resveratrol may attenuate fat deposition by inhibiting SREBP1 expression via Sirt1-FOXO1 pathway and thus may have application for the treatment of NAFLD"
• Resveratrol protects cardiomyocytes from hypoxia-induced apoptosis through the SIRT1-FoxO1 pathway - Biochem Biophys Res Commun. 2008 Dec 3 - "Loss of cardiomyocytes through apoptosis has been proposed as a cause of ventricular remodeling and heart failure. Ischemia- and hypoxia-induced apoptosis of cardiomyocytes reportedly plays an important role in many cardiac pathologies. We investigated whether resveratrol (Res) has direct cytoprotective effects against ischemia/hypoxia for cardiomyocytes. Exposure of H9c2 embryonic rat heart-derived cells to hypoxia for 24h caused a significant increase in apoptosis, as evaluated by TUNEL and flow cytometry, while treatment with 20muM Res greatly decreased hypoxia-induced apoptosis in these cells. Exposure of the cells to Res (20muM) caused rapid activation of SIRT1, which had a dual effect on FoxO1 function: SIRT1 increased FoxO1's ability to induce cell cycle arrest, but inhibited FoxO1's ability to induce cell death. This effect could be reversed by SIRT1 inhibition. Results of our study indicate that Res inhibits hypoxia-induced apoptosis via the SIRT1-FoxO1 pathway in H9c2 cells. This polyphenol may have potential in preventing cardiovascular disease, especially in coronary artery disease (CAD) patients"

Abstracts from this week's Doctor's Guide Nutrition/Dietetics plus abstracts from my RSS feeds (Click here for the journals, the PubMed ones at the top):

Cytoprotective effects of olive mill wastewater extract and its main constituent hydroxytyrosol in PC12 cells - Pharmacol Res. 2010 Jun 16 - "Following a short-term exposure (30min) to the compounds of interest, cells were subjected to oxidative or nitrosative stress by adding either ferrous iron or sodium nitroprusside to the cell culture medium for 18h, respectively. Cytotoxicity was assessed by measuring MTT reduction, cellular ATP levels and mitochondrial membrane potential in the absence and presence of HT or HT-rich olive mill wastewater extract. The results we obtained mainly confirm our previous observation of promising cytoprotection of brain cells by HT-rich olive mill wastewater extract in different stressor paradigms" - See olive leaf extract at Amazon.com.

An Antiinflammatory and Reactive Oxygen Species Suppressive Effects of an Extract of Polygonum Cuspidatum Containing Resveratrol - J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2010 Jun 9 - "The extract induced a significant reduction in reactive oxygen species generation, the expression of p47(phox), intranuclear nuclear factor-kappaB binding, and the expression of jun-N-terminal kinase-1, inhibitor of kappaB-kinase-beta, phosphotyrosine phosphatase-1B, and suppressor of cytokine signaling-3 in mononuclear cells when compared with the baseline and the placebo. PCE intake also suppressed plasma concentrations of TNF-alpha, IL-6, and C-reactive protein. There was no change in these indices in the control group given placebo. Conclusions: The PCE-containing resveratrol has a comprehensive suppressive effect on oxidative and inflammatory stress" - See resveratrol products at Amazon.com.

Can the Mediterranean diet lower HbA1c in type 2 diabetes? Results from a randomized cross-over study - Nutr Metab Cardiovasc Dis. 2010 Jul 29 - "Compared with usual diet, on the ad libitum Mediterranean intervention diet glycosylated haemoglobin fell from 7.1% (95% CI: 6.5-7.7) to 6.8%"

Acute resveratrol supplementation improves flow-mediated dilatation in overweight/obese individuals with mildly elevated blood pressure - Nutr Metab Cardiovasc Dis. 2010 Jul 29 - "Flow-mediated dilatation of the brachial artery (FMD) is a biomarker of endothelial function and cardiovascular health. Impaired FMD is associated with several cardiovascular risk factors including hypertension and obesity. Various food ingredients such as polyphenols have been shown to improve FMD ... One hour after consumption of the supplement, plasma resveratrol and FMD were measured. Data were analyzed by linear regression versus log(10) dose of resveratrol. 14 men and 5 women (age 55 +/- 2 years, BMI 28.7 +/- 0.5 kg m(-2), BP 141 +/- 2/89 +/- 1 mmHg) completed this study. There was a significant dose effect of resveratrol on plasma resveratrol concentration (P < 0.001) and on FMD (P < 0.01), which increased from 4.1 +/- 0.8% (placebo) to 7.7 +/- 1.5% after 270 mg resveratrol. FMD was also linearly related to log(10) plasma resveratrol concentration" - See resveratrol products at Amazon.com.

Red meat consumption and risk of heart failure in male physicians - Nutr Metab Cardiovasc Dis. 2010 Jul 30 - "there was a positive and graded relation between red meat consumption and HF [hazard ratio (95% CI) of 1.0 (reference), 1.02 (0.85-1.22), 1.08 (0.90-1.30), 1.17 (0.97-1.41), and 1.24 (1.03-1.48) from the lowest to the highest quintile of red meat, respectively"

Waist Circumference but Not Body Mass Index Predicts Long-Term Mortality in Elderly Subjects with Chronic Heart Failure - J Am Geriatr Soc. 2010 Jul 28 - "Mortality increased as WC increased in elderly subjects without CHF (from 47.8% to 56.7%, P=.01), and the increase was even greater in patients with CHF (from 58.1% to 82.0%, P=.01). In contrast, mortality decreased as BMI increased in elderly subjects without CHF (from 53.8% to 46.1%, P0 =.046) but not in those with CHF. According to Cox regression analysis, BMI protected against long-term mortality in the absence but not in the presence of CHF. In the absence of CHF, WC was associated with a 2% increased risk of long-term mortality for each 1-cm greater WC (Hazard Ratio (HR)=1.02, 95% confidence interval (CI)=1.01-1.03; P<.001), versus 5% increased in the presence of CHF (HR=1.06, 95% CI=1.02-1.10; P<.001)"

Resveratrol and Small Artery Compliance and Remodeling in the Spontaneously Hypertensive Rat - Am J Hypertens. 2010 Jul 29 - "The ability of resveratrol to limit the increase in compliance of SHR arteries is likely related to inhibitory effects on remodeling and pro-growth ERK signaling rather than blood pressure or arterial wall component stiffness" - See resveratrol products at Amazon.com.

Long-Term High Intake of Whole Proteins Results in Renal Damage in Pigs - J Nutr. 2010 Jul 28 - "These findings suggest that long-term intakes of protein at the upper limit of the AMDR from whole protein sources may compromise renal health"

Whole Grains Are Associated with Serum Concentrations of High Sensitivity C-Reactive Protein among Premenopausal Women - J Nutr. 2010 Jul 28 - "Whole grain intake was inversely associated with hs-CRP concentrations after adjusting for age, race, BMI, illness, and antiinflammatory drug use. Consumers of between 0 and 1 serving/d of whole grains had, on average, 11.5% lower hs-CRP concentrations (P = 0.02) and consumers of >/=1 serving/d had 12.3% lower hs-CRP concentrations (P = 0.02) compared with nonconsumers"

N-Acetylcysteine interacts with copper to generate hydrogen peroxide and selectively induce cancer cell death - Cancer Lett. 2010 Jul 26 - "NAC/Cu(II) significantly alters growth and induces apoptosis in human cancer lines, yet NAC/Zn(II) and NAC/Fe(III) do not. We further confirmed that this cytotoxicity of NAC/Cu(II) is attributed to reactive oxygen species (ROS). These findings indicate that the combination of Cu(II) and thiols generates cytotoxic ROS that induce apoptosis in cancer cells. They also indicate a fourth class of anti-neoplastic metal-binding compounds, the "ROS generators"" - See n-acetyl cysteine at Amazon.com.

Glutamine in critical illness: the time has come, the time is now - Crit Care Clin. 2010 Jul;26(3):515-25 - "Glutamine (GLN) has been shown to be a key pharmaconutrient in the body's response to stress and injury. It exerts its protective effects via multiple mechanisms, including direct protection of cells and tissue from injury, attenuation inflammation, and preservation of metabolic function. Data support GLN as an ideal pharmacologic intervention to prevent or treat multiple organ dysfunction syndrome after sepsis or other injuries in the intensive care unit population. A large and growing body of clinical data shows that in well-defined critically ill patient groups GLN can be a life-saving intervention" - See L-glutamine at Amazon.com

Increased plasma PYY levels following supplementation with the functional fiber PolyGlycopleX in healthy adults - Eur J Clin Nutr. 2010 Jul 28 - "A variety of dietary fibers have been shown to alter satiety hormone gene expression and secretion. The objective of this study was to examine plasma satiety hormone concentrations in healthy subjects consuming either PolyGlycopleX (PGX) or control (skim milk powder) for 21 days ... Primary outcomes measured at three visits (V1, V2 and V3) were plasma active glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) total ghrelin, peptide YY (PYY) and insulin. Results: There was a significant effect of visit for fasting PYY with control participants experiencing decreased PYY levels over time while PGX prevented this decline. When stratified by body mass index (BMI), PGX increased fasting PYY levels from week 1 to week 3 compared with control in participants with BMI <23 kg/m(2). There was a significant effect of visit for fasting ghrelin with levels decreasing in both PGX and control groups over time. No differences were detected in fasting GLP-1 levels. Although there was a 14% reduction in fasting insulin between V1 and V3 with PGX this was not significantly different from control" - Note:  I don't know how they determine that a 14% reduction isn't significant.  See PGX at Amazon.com.

Association between alcohol consumption and carotid intima-media thickness in a healthy population: data of the STRATEGY study (Stress, Atherosclerosis and ECG Study) - Eur J Clin Nutr. 2010 Jul 28 - "The mean a href="../fphardeningofarteries.htm">IMT was significantly higher in men with an alcohol intake above the upper limit of 20 g/day than in men with an alcohol intake <20 g/day (P<0.001). According to a stepwise linear regression model adjusted for age, conventional risk factors, nutrition and physical activity, the IMT increases by 0.0253 mm per 21.4 g/day intake of alcohol in men (P<0.05).Conclusions: The STRATEGY study revealed a positive association between alcohol consumption and carotid IMT in healthy men aged 30-70 years. This relationship remained significant after adjustment for nutrition, physical activity, anthropometry and conventional cardiovascular risk factors"

Blueberries Decrease Cardiovascular Risk Factors in Obese Men and Women with Metabolic Syndrome - J Nutr. 2010 Jul 21 - "Forty-eight participants with metabolic syndrome [4 males and 44 females; BMI: 37.8 +/- 2.3 kg/m(2); age: 50.0 +/- 3.0 y (mean +/- SE)] consumed freeze-dried blueberry beverage (50 g freeze-dried blueberries, approximately 350 g fresh blueberries) or equivalent amounts of fluids (controls, 960 mL water) daily for 8 wk in a randomized controlled trial. Anthropometric and blood pressure measurements, assessment of dietary intakes, and fasting blood draws were conducted at screening and at wk 4 and 8 of the study. The decreases in systolic and diastolic blood pressures were greater in the blueberry-supplemented group (-6 and -4%, respectively) than in controls (-1.5 and -1.2%) (P < 0.05), whereas the serum glucose concentration and lipid profiles were not affected. The decreases in plasma oxidized LDL and serum malondialdehyde and hydroxynonenal concentrations were greater in the blueberry group (-28 and -17%, respectively) than in the control group (-9 and -9%) (P < 0.01). Our study shows blueberries may improve selected features of metabolic syndrome and related cardiovascular risk factors at dietary achievable doses" - See blueberry extract at Amazon.com.

Associations of red meat, fat, and protein intake with distal colorectal cancer risk - Nutr Cancer. 2010 Aug;62(6):701-9 - "There was no association between total, saturated, or monounsaturated fat and distal CRC risk. In African Americans, the OR of distal CRC for the highest category of polyunsaturated fat intake was 0.28 (95% CI = 0.08-0.96). The percent of energy from protein was associated with a 47% risk reduction in Whites (Q4 OR = 0.53, 95% CI = 0.37-0.77). Red meat consumption in Whites was associated with a marginally significant risk reduction (Q4 OR = 0.66, 95% CI = 0.43-1.00). Our results do not support the hypotheses that fat, protein, and red meat increase the risk of distal CRC"

Nutrients and risk of prostate cancer - Nutr Cancer. 2010 Aug;62(6):710-8 - "Intake of trans fat was associated with the risk of PCa; the OR for the highest vs. the lowest quartile was 1.45 (95% CI = 1.16-1.81); the association was apparently stronger in subjects aged less than 65, normal weight men, and ever smokers. An increased risk was also observed with increasing intake of sucrose and disaccharides. In contrast, men in the highest quartile of cholesterol intake were at lower risk of PCa. No association was found with intake of total proteins, total fat, monounsaturated fats, polyunsaturated fats, monosaccharides, and total carbohydrates. The findings provide evidence that a diet low in trans fat could reduce PCa risk"

Mixed Tocotrienols Inhibit Prostate Carcinogenesis in TRAMP Mice - Nutr Cancer. 2010 Aug;62(6):789-94 - "mixed-tocotrienol-fed groups had a lower incidence of tumor formation along with a significant reduction in the average wet weight of genitourinary apparatus. Furthermore, mixed tocotrienols significantly reduced the levels of high-grade neoplastic lesions as compared to the positive controls. This decrease in levels of high-grade neoplastic lesions was found to be associated with increased expression of proapoptotic proteins BAD (Bcl(2) antagonist of cell death) and cleaved caspase-3 and cell cycle regulatory proteins cyclin dependent kinase inhibitors p21 and p27. In contrast, the expression of cyclins A and E were found to be decreased in mixed-tocotrienol groups. Taken together, our results show that by modulating cell cycle regulatory proteins and increasing expression of proapoptotic proteins, mixed tocotrienols suppress prostate tumorigenesis in the TRAMP mice" - See Jarrow FamilE (contains all eight members of the vitamin E family, includes Tocomin) at Amazon.com.

Supplement Focus (Melatonin):

Related Topics:

• insomnia / cancer cures / memory loss

News & Research:

• melatonin at Amazon.com
• Melatonin: The Fountain Of Youth? - Science Daily, 6/22/09 - "Melatonin can slow down the effects of aging. A team at laboratoire Arago in Banyuls sur Mer (CNRS / Université Pierre et Marie Curie) has found that a treatment based on melatonin can delay the first signs of aging in a small mammal ... studied the long-term effects of melatonin on the Greater White-toothed shrew, a small nocturnal insectivorous mammal. Under normal conditions, this animal shows the first signs of aging after reaching 12 months, mainly through the loss of circadian rhythm in its activities. By continuously administering melatonin, starting a little before 12 months, the appearance of these first signs was delayed by at least 3 months, which is a considerable period in relation to the lifespan of this shrew ... Melatonin is now known to play several beneficial roles. These include being an antioxidant, an anti-depressant, and helping to remediate sleep problems"
• Melatonin May Save Eyesight In Inflammatory Disease, Study Suggests - Science Daily, 11/23/08
• Low Melatonin Associated with Increased Risk of Breast Cancer in Postmenopausal Women - Science Daily, 6/15/08 - "women with the lowest levels of melatonin had a statistically significantly higher incidence of breast cancer than those with the highest levels"
• Night Shift Work May Cause Cancer - WebMD, 11/30/07 - "They note that shift work may raise cancer risk by suppressing production of melatonin, a chemical involved in the circadian rhythm"
• High Melatonin Content Can Help Delay Aging, Mouse Study Suggests - Science Daily, 4/24/07 - "Therefore, the researcher asserts, daily melatonin intake in humans from the age of 30 or 40 could prevent – or, at least, delay – illnesses related to aging, free radicals and inflammatory processes, such as many neurodegenerative disorders (e.g. Parkinson's disease) and complications linked to other illnesses, like diabetes"
• Salivary Melatonin May Help Fight Gum Disease - Science Daily, 9/13/06 - "the melatonin may fight against infection and inflammation possibly due to its antioxidant, anti-aging and immunoenhancing ability"
• Grapes May Help With Sleep - WebMD, 6/19/06 - "The juicy fruit might be packing melatonin, a sleep hormone"
• Another Grape Excuse To Hit The Bottle - Science Daily, 6/16/06 - "the grapes used to make some of the most popular red wines contain high levels of the sleep hormone melatonin"
• Best Time to Take Melatonin? - WebMD, 5/3/06
• Melatonin Improves Mood In Winter Depression - Science Daily, 5/2/06 - "melatonin, a naturally occurring brain substance, can relieve the doldrums of winter depression, also known as seasonal affective disorder, or SAD"
• Melatonin Most Effective For Sleep When Taken For Off-hour Sleeping - Science Daily, 5/1/06 - "sleep efficiency during the six hour, 40 minute episodes was significantly higher in the groups that took melatonin during times when the body was not producing melatonin. At those times, participants taking 5.0mg of melatonin had a sleep efficiency of 83 percent and those taking 0.3mg melatonin had a sleep efficiency of 84 percent"
• Melatonin Supplements review - ConsumerLab.com, 4/5/06
• Melatonin Pills May Help Ease Tinnitus - WebMD, 2/24/06
• Melatonin could help tinnitus, improve sleep - Nutra USA, 2/23/06
• Melatonin for Travelers' Sleep Woes? - WebMD, 2/9/06
• Melatonin may cut hypertension - Nutra USA, 2/2/06 - "A 10 per cent decline of BP over daytime values is considered appropriate to reduce the cardiovascular risk ... During placebo use only 39 per cent of the subjects reached this value, but this rate surged to 84 per cent during melatonin administration"
• Study Demonstrates Role Of Exercise In Modifying Melatonin Levels; Increase Believed To Offer Breast Cancer Protection - Science Daily, 12/3/05
• Stopping Jet Lag Before It Starts - WebMD, 11/2/05 - "The body clocks of those who took melatonin adapted better to the new schedule. The higher dose of melatonin fared best in that regard, but not by much. Plus, people who took the higher dose were sleepier in the evenings after taking the pill"
• Travelers Can Avoid Jet Lag By Resetting Their Body Clocks - Science Daily, 11/2/05
• Melatonin to Fight Insomnia: Timing Is Key - WebMD, 10/25/05 - "melatonin was most effective in resetting the body's internal, or circadian, clock when it was timed to the individual's sleep patterns ... If you only want to induce sleep you can take it about two hours before you want to go to sleep"
• Melatonin May Reduce the Pain of Irritable Bowel Syndrome - Medscape, 10/14/05 - "Use of 3 mg of melatonin once daily for two weeks in IBS patients is associated with improvement in bowel pain and rectal distension thresholds for urgency and pain but not with a change in stool frequency, type, or quality of life"
• Add-On Melatonin Improves Sleep Behavior in Children With Epilepsy: Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Trial - Medscape, 5/24/05
• Melatonin Modestly Effective for Sleep - WebMD, 3/3/05
• Melatonin study could 'jump-start' interest in supplement - Nutra USA, 3/2/05
• Popular Supplement Melatonin Found To Have Broader Effects In Brain Than Once Thought - Science Daily, 2/11/05 - "In experiments on the Japanese quail, the researchers found that melatonin switches on a recently discovered hormone called gonadotropin inhibitory hormone (GnIH), which has been found to have the opposite effect to the key hormone priming the body for sex – gonadotropin releasing hormone (GnRH). In birds, switching off GnRH causes the gonads – testes and ovary – to shrink as part of the birds' yearly cycle"
• U.S. Study Sees Little Benefit From Melatonin - HealthDay, 12/22/04 - "The one area where melatonin did seem to work was with a group of people with a condition called "delayed sleep phase syndrome," which means that otherwise healthy people have a biological quirk that prevents a normal sleep cycle"
• Melatonin Supplements May Not Help Sleep - WebMD, 12/10/04
• Melatonin May Improve Sleep Quality in Patients With Asthma - Medscape, 11/1/04
• Melatonin Effective in Relieving Pain But Not Sleep Disturbance Related to Irritable Bowel Syndrome - Doctor's Guide, 9/30/04
• Melatonin May Help Prevent Migraines - WebMD, 9/9/04
• Melatonin Decreases Migraine Frequency and Intensity - Medscape, 9/9/04 - "Of 32 patients who completed the study, 25 patients (78.1%) had at least a 50% reduction in headache frequency from baseline, eight patients (25%) had no headaches, and none of the patients had increased headaches after three months of therapy"
• Melatonin Relieves Stabbing Headaches - Healthwell Exchange Daily News, 2/26/04
• Melatonin to Lower Blood Pressure? - Dr. Weil, 2/24/04
• Caffeine, Melatonin May Ease Jet Lag - WebMD, 2/6/04
• Nightime Melatonin Supplementation May Be Useful in the Treatment of Essential Hypertension - Doctor's Guide, 2/4/04 - "2.5 mg/day ... mean sleep systolic blood pressure decreased by 6 mm Hg and mean sleep diastolic blood pressure decreased by 4 mm Hg ... Repeated melatonin significantly increased sleep efficiency from 80% to 85% and increased actual sleep time from 5.6 to 6.1 hours. Melatonin therapy also reduced sleep latency from 33 to 22 minutes"
• Jet Lag Hormone Lowers Blood Pressure - WebMD, 1/20/04
• Melatonin May Cut Hypertension Risk - HealthDay, 1/19/04 - "The men were randomly assigned to receive either a placebo, a single dose of melatonin or 2.5 milligrams of melatonin one hour before bedtime for three weeks ... those taking the hormone each night throughout the three weeks had lower nighttime systolic and diastolic blood pressure. Systolic blood pressure (the top number in the reading) decreased by an average of six millimeters of mercury while the diastolic blood pressure (the bottom number) decreased by an average of four millimeters of mercury" - See iHerb or Vitacost melatonin products.
• Melatonin and Cancer Treatment - Life Extension Magazine, 1/04
• Melatonin Helpful for Delayed Sleep Onset in Children With ADHD - Medscape, 10/21/03
• People With Asthma Cautioned About Melatonin Use - Doctor's Guide, 9/8/03
• Hormone Melatonin Slows Breast Cancer - WebMD, 7/14/03 - "The nighttime hormone melatonin puts breast cancer cells to sleep. It also slows breast cancer growth by 70%"
• Nighttime Computer Users May Lose Sleep - WebMD, 6/20/03 - "the bright light of a computer screen may alter the body's biological clock and suppress the natural production of melatonin that's critical to the normal sleep-wake cycle"
• Night Shifts May Raise Cancer Risk - WebMD, 6/3/03 - "Data from an ongoing study of almost 80,000 nurses already suggest that working nights increases a woman's risk of breast cancer ... a new analysis points to a similar association for colorectal cancer ... "The peak production of melatonin occurs at about 1 or 2 a.m." Exposure to light at night stops the production of melatonin" - See iHerb or Vitacost melatonin products.
• Melatonin Effective Treatment for Chronic Insomnia in Children - New Hope Natural Media, 5/15/03
• Melatonin Appears Safe for Child Insomniacs - Clinical Psychiatry News, 3/03 - "Melatonin appears to be a safe and effective treatment for children with insomnia ... The average age of the patients was 9.6 years ... Dr. Ivanenko, who is a child psychiatrist at the University of Louisville (Ky.), said she typically starts children at 1-5 mg of melatonin and titrates up to as much as 8-10 mg in adolescents" -  See iHerb or Vitacost melatonin products.
• Melatonin: What Is the Scoop? - Dr. Weil, 1/28/03
• Melatonin May Worsen Asthma - WebMD, 10/9/02
• Melatonin Helps Shorten Recovery Time from Jet Lag - New Hope Natural Media, 7/11/02
• Neuroprotective Effects of Melatonin Assessed - Doctor's Guide, 4/30/02 - "The neuroprotective effects of melatonin appear to be related to antioxidant and antiamyloidogenic features of the hormone, not to the involvement of melatonin receptors"
• Can Melatonin Put Tumors to Sleep? - Nutrition Science News, 12/01
• Melatonin Helps Children Sleep Through Magnetic Resonance Studies - Doctor's Guide, 11/26/01
• Study: Power Lines May Aid Cancer Cells - Intelihealth, 10/29/01 - "electromagnetic fields disrupted the functioning of the hormone melatonin in individual cells ... Scientists have accepted since 1987 that the substance suppresses the multiplication of cancer cells ... They exposed two batches of the [breast cancer] cell to two different levels of electromagnetic field ... In both cases, the ability of melatonin to suppress the growth of the cancer cells was found to have declined. In some cells with smaller concentrations of melatonin, the suppressive effect was entirely absent"
• Melatonin Helps Break Valium Dependence - Nutrition Science News, 3/01
• Study bolsters melatonin sleep claims - CNN, 10/12/00
• Setting the Body Clock in the Dark - WebMD, 10/12/00
• Hormone Can Regulate Internal Clock - Intelihealth, 10/12/00
• Not Getting Your Zs? Melatonin Can Help - WebMD, 6/23/00
• Melatonin helps kids with sleep-onset insomnia - Doctor's Guide, 5/2/00
• A Supplement Plan for Seniors - Nutrition Science News, 12/99
• Electric Magnetic Fields Reduce Melatonin - Nutrition Science News, 10/99
• Sleep's healing properties - CNN, 8/25/99

Abstracts:

• Urinary melatonin and risk of incident hypertension among young women J Hypertens. 2010 Jan 19 - "During 8 years of follow-up, a total of 125 women developed hypertension. The relative risk for incident hypertension among women in the highest quartile of urinary melatonin (>27.0 ng/mg creatinine) as compared with the lowest quartile (<10.1 ng/mg creatinine) was 0.49 (95% confidence interval 0.28-0.85, P < 0.001). CONCLUSION: First morning melatonin levels are independently and inversely associated with incident hypertension; low melatonin production may be a pathophysiologic factor in the development of hypertension"
• Melatonin Treatment for Insomnia in Pediatric Patients with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (January) - Ann Pharmacother. 2009 Dec 22 - "Available data suggest that melatonin is a well-tolerated and efficacious treatment option for pediatric patients with chronic SOI and ADHD"
• Dietary correlates of urinary 6-sulfatoxymelatonin concentrations in the Nurses' Health Study cohorts2 - Am J Clin Nutr. 2009 Aug 12 - "In multivariate analyses, we found no significant associations between the intake of various nutrients, including tryptophan and urinary melatonin concentrations. A higher intake of meat, particularly red meat, was associated with lower concentrations of aMT6s (adjusted mean concentrations of aMT6s across increasing quartiles of red meat intake were 17.9, 17.0, 18.1, and 15.3 ng/mg creatinine; P for trend = 0.02). In contrast, neither intake of poultry (including turkey) nor fish was associated with aMT6s concentrations ... Although no specific nutrients were associated with altered concentrations of melatonin, our findings raise the possibility that several specific foods, including red meat, could affect cancer risk through the lowering of melatonin concentrations"
• The circadian melatonin rhythm and its modulation: possible impact on hypertension - J Hypertens. 2009 Aug;27 Suppl 6:S17-20 - "The chronic administration of melatonin to individuals with hypertension induces a measurable drop in night time systolic and diastolic blood pressure. Moreover, the higher the night time level of endogenous melatonin (estimated from urinary metabolite of melatonin, 6-hydroxymelatonin sulphate), the greater the reduction in arterial blood pressure at night. The implication of these findings is that melatonin may have utility as an antihypertensive agent"
• Effect of melatonin, captopril, spironolactone and simvastatin on blood pressure and left ventricular remodelling in spontaneously hypertensive rats - J Hypertens. 2009 Aug;27 Suppl 6:S5-10 - "It is concluded that although melatonin, in comparison with captopril, did not reverse left ventricle hypertrophy, it reversed left ventricular fibrosis. This protection by melatonin may be caused by its prominent antioxidative effect"
• Urinary melatonin levels and postmenopausal breast cancer risk in the nurses' health study cohort - Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev. 2009 Jan;18(1):74-9 - "An increased concentration of urinary aMT6s was statistically significantly associated with a lower risk of breast cancer (odds ratio for the highest versus lowest quartile of morning urinary aMT6s, 0.62 ... Results from this prospective study add substantially to the growing literature that supports an inverse association between melatonin levels and breast cancer risk"
• Endocrine regulation of the course of menopause by oral melatonin: first case report - Menopause. 2007 Nov 8 - "The data obtained in this case report show that melatonin administration was able to delay the characteristic endocrine changes that occur during the course of menopause"
• Night Shift Work and the Risk of Endometrial Cancer - Cancer Res. 2007 Nov 1;67(21):10618-10622 - "Women who worked 20+ years of rotating night shifts had a significantly increased risk of endometrial cancer [MVRR, 1.47 ... obese women working rotating night shifts doubled their baseline risk of endometrial cancer (MVRR, 2.09; 95% CI, 1.24-3.52) compared with obese women who did no night work ... Women working rotating night shifts for a long duration have a significantly increased risk of endometrial cancer, particularly if they are obese. We speculate that this increased risk is attributable to the effects of melatonin on hormonal and metabolic factors"
• Acute effect of metformin on exercise capacity in active males - Diabetes Obes Metab. 2007 Oct 29 - "A single dose of metformin does not acutely influence maximal oxygen consumption or ventilatory threshold in healthy active males. The lower lactate concentration observed during continuous exercise with metformin was an unexpected finding considering that, in the resting state, metformin has been previously associated with a modest increase in lactate concentrations"
• Efficacy of prolonged release melatonin in insomnia patients aged 55-80 years: quality of sleep and next-day alertness outcomes - Curr Med Res Opin. 2007 Sep 14 - "PR-melatonin results in significant and clinically meaningful improvements in sleep quality, morning alertness, sleep onset latency and quality of life in primary insomnia patients aged 55 years and over"
• Effects of melatonin and rilmazafone on nocturia in the elderly - J Int Med Res. 2007 Sep-Oct;35(5):685-91 - "melatonin (2 mg/day; n = 20) or rilmazafone (2 mg/day; n = 22) for 4 weeks ... After 4 weeks' treatment, the number of nocturnal urinations was significantly decreased and the QoL score was significantly improved in both groups. There was no significant difference between the patient-reported effectiveness ratings between the two groups" - See melatonin at Amazon.com.
• Daily nighttime melatonin reduces blood pressure in male patients with essential hypertension - Hypertension. 2004 Feb;43(2):192-7 - "In patients with essential hypertension, repeated bedtime melatonin intake significantly reduced nocturnal blood pressure"-  See iHerb or Vitacost melatonin products.
• Melatonin-induced reduction in age-related accumulation of oxidative damage in mice - Biogerontology. 2003;4(3):133-9 - "The findings indicate that low-dose chronic administration of melatonin acts as a free radical scavenger and anti-aging agent"
• Melatonin treatment for tardive dyskinesia: a double-blind, placebo-controlled, crossover study - Arch Gen Psychiatry 2001 Nov;58(11):1049-52
• Melatonin inhibits testosterone secretion by acting at hypothalamo-pituitary-gonadal axis in the rat - Neuroendocrinol Lett 2000;21(4):301-306
• Antioxidative effects of melatonin in protection against cellular damage caused by ionizing radiation - Proc Soc Exp Biol Med. 2000 Oct;225(1):9-22 - "The radioprotective effects of melatonin against cellular damage caused by oxidative stress and its low toxicity make this molecule a potential supplement in the treatment or co-treatment in situations where the effects of ionizing radiation are to be minimized."
• Evidence for a local action of melatonin on the rat prostate - J Urol 1998 Mar;159(3):1069-73 - "The results demonstrate putative melatonin receptors in the rat prostate and suggest a direct suppression by melatonin of testosterone-dependent prostate growth"
• Bioavailability of oral melatonin in humans - Neuroendocrinology 1984 Oct;39(4):307-13 (shows that melatonin has a short half-life)

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