Supplementing melatonin might promote weight control— according to the results of a study on mice by Italian researchers. Lean and obese mice were given melatonin or a placebo in the drinking water for eight weeks. Melatonin reduced weight, fat storage area, and reverse fat tissue enlargement in the obese mice but not the lean mice. It worked by decreasing inflammation and normalizing adipokines, which are important fat signaling chemicals. A study on mice by Pengfei Xu and colleagues from Beijing Normal University in China found that melatonin altered the composition of microbes in the gut, which promoted fat loss. Melatonin supplements help promote sleep and weight control.
(Journal of Pineal Research, published online March 10, 2018; Nutrition Research 35: 891-900, 2015)
