Melatonin supplements can boost the benefits of exercise for MS
Study shows the sleep hormone pairs with high-intensity training to lower stress
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A 12-week trial shows that combining physical exercise and melatonin works better than either alone to fight MS-related inflammation and oxidative stress. (Photo from iStock)
- Combining high-intensity exercise and melatonin benefits people with multiple sclerosis.
- This combination significantly reduces oxidative stress, inflammation, and "bad" cholesterol.
- It also improves body composition, reducing body fat more than exercise alone.
Combining high-intensity physical exercise with melatonin supplements may offer greater benefits for people with multiple sclerosis (MS) than either approach alone, a new clinical trial shows.
The combination was particularly effective at decreasing markers of cellular stress and inflammation, lowering “bad” cholesterol, and reducing body fat, according to researchers.
The study, “Benefits of 12-week self-paced training combined with melatonin supplementation on oxidative stress, inflammation, hyperlipidemia, and body composition in multiple sclerosis patients: a randomized controlled trial,” was published in the journal Brain Research Bulletin.
Targeting inflammation and oxidative stress
MS is a chronic disorder marked by inflammation that damages healthy cells in the brain and spinal cord. Among its effects on the body, MS inflammation is associated with an increase in oxidative stress, a type of cellular damage driven by highly reactive molecules produced during metabolism.
Previous studies have suggested that physical exercise can lessen inflammation and oxidative stress and improve body composition in people with MS. Melatonin, a naturally occurring hormone that helps regulate sleep, is also thought to reduce oxidative stress and inflammation.
To see if the therapies work better together, a team led by scientists in Tunisia conducted a small clinical trial comparing the combined regimen against either intervention on its own.
The study enrolled 49 people with MS, 11 of whom underwent a 12-week intervention consisting of a high-intensity interval and resistance training regimen three times per week alongside nightly melatonin. Other participants did the exercises but received a placebo instead of melatonin, or took the supplements without exercising. There was also a control group that received a placebo and did not exercise.
The researchers found that the combined exercise-and-melatonin group showed significantly greater reductions in oxidative stress markers than patients in either the exercise-only or melatonin-only groups. In fact, neither individual treatment group differed significantly from the control group in terms of oxidative stress reduction.
The combination group also showed greater reductions in inflammatory immune cell levels and in low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, commonly called “bad cholesterol” because higher levels are associated with cardiovascular disease. Compared with patients who exercised only, individuals who exercised and took melatonin had greater reductions in body fat content.
Other assessments, such as measures of kidney function and body-wide inflammation, did not differ significantly between the groups. No safety issues were reported.
“According to our results, [high-intensity interval training and resistance training] combined with melatonin was more effective than each intervention alone in [reducing] oxidative stress, [bad cholesterol levels], and immune-induced inflammation,” the researchers concluded.
“This combined therapy was also more effective than [exercise] alone in improving body composition,” they added.
The scientists noted that this was a small study conducted over only a few months and highlighted the need for larger, longer trials to corroborate the results.
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