Melatonin is a hormone produced by the pineal gland that helps regulate our sleep-wake cycle. Low levels of melatonin have been linked to various sleep disorders, including insomnia, and even cancer. Fortunately, there are simple dietary and lifestyle strategies that can help increase melatonin levels naturally. Here are some tips:
Eat a melatonin-rich diet: Some foods are naturally rich in melatonin, including tart cherries, raspberries, oats, walnuts, and almonds. Tart cherries, specifically, have been shown to increase melatonin levels, helping to improve sleep quality (1). Incorporate these foods into your diet regularly to promote optimal melatonin levels.
Restrict blue light exposure: Our natural melatonin production is suppressed by blue light exposure from electronic devices such as televisions, tablets, and smartphones. Make a conscious effort to avoid these devices a couple of hours before bedtime. If you must use them, consider using blue light blocking glasses or turning on the “night mode” option.
Sleep in a dark environment: Dark environments naturally enhance our melatonin function, so ensure that your bedroom is pitch-dark at night. Consider using blackout curtains to reduce light exposure while you sleep.
Practice stress-reducing exercises: Stress and anxiety can interfere with melatonin production. Incorporating stress-reducing activities such as meditation, yoga, or deep breathing, can help lower stress levels, positively impacting melatonin.
Take a melatonin supplement: Melatonin supplements have been shown to help improve sleep quality in certain individuals. It is important to talk to your doctor before beginning any supplemental regimen, but melatonin is generally regarded as safe when taken appropriately (2).
Implementing a few of these strategies can help improve natural melatonin production and promote better sleep. Combined with a nutritious, well-balanced diet, individuals can support optimal health with these simple, cost-effective methods.
References:
Pigeon, W., Carr, M., Gorman, C., and Perlis, M. (2010). Effects of tart cherry juice beverage on the sleep of older adults with insomnia: a pilot study. Journal of Medicinal Food, 13(3), 579-583.
Buscemi, N., Vandermeer, B., Friesen, C., Bialy, L., Tubman, M., Ospina, M., Klassen, T., and Witmans, M. (2004). The efficacy and safety of exogenous melatonin for primary sleep disorders: a meta-analysis. Journal of General Internal Medicine, 19(2), 115-127.
Melatonin is a hormone that is naturally produced by the pineal gland in the brain. Its main job is to help regulate the body’s circadian rhythms, which are the natural cycles of sleeping and waking that occur daily. Melatonin is particularly important for getting a good night’s sleep, and it can also have positive effects on overall health and weight.
One of the key functions of melatonin is to help regulate the sleep-wake cycle. When it gets dark outside, the body naturally begins to produce more melatonin, which signals to the brain that it’s time to wind down and prepare for sleep. Conversely, when it gets light outside, melatonin production decreases, which tells the brain that it’s time to wake up and start the day. By regulating these cycles, melatonin can help improve sleep quality and ensure that people wake up feeling refreshed and ready to tackle the day.
In addition to its effects on sleep, melatonin has also been shown to have a number of other health benefits. For example, it is a potent antioxidant, meaning that it can help protect cells from damage caused by harmful molecules called free radicals. This can in turn help reduce the risk of a number of different diseases, including cancer and cardiovascular disease.
Melatonin has also been shown to have positive effects on weight management. In one study, researchers found that supplementing with melatonin helped to reduce body weight and fat mass in overweight and obese individuals. The researchers speculated that this may be due to the fact that melatonin can help improve sleep quality, which in turn can lead to changes in appetite and energy levels.
Overall, it is clear that melatonin is an important hormone that can have positive effects on both sleep and overall health. If you are struggling to get a good night’s sleep, or if you are interested in improving your overall wellbeing, consider talking to a functional nutritionist about incorporating melatonin into your daily routine.
References:
Godfrey, D. A. (2017). Melatonin as a therapeutic intervention in otolaryngology: Head and neck surgery. Sleep Science and Practice, 1(1).
Pires, W., & Bordini, E. A. (2019). The effects of melatonin on weight gain, fat mass, and lipid metabolism: a systematic review. Frontiers in Endocrinology, 10, 86.
Vollmer, C., Michel, U., & Randler, C. (2012). Outdoor light at night (LAN) is correlated with eveningness in adolescents. Chronobiology International, 29(4), 502-508.
Leptin is a hormone produced by our fat cells that regulates how much we eat and the amount of energy we burn. Its main function is to signal the brain when we have eaten enough and are satiated, thus promoting weight loss. However, sometimes the body becomes resistant to the effects of leptin, and this can lead to overeating and weight gain. This condition is known as leptin resistance.
Leptin resistance occurs when the body stops responding to the signal produced by the hormone. This can happen due to a number of reasons, but the most common is excess body fat. Excessive amounts of fat in the body lead to a constant release of leptin, and over time the brain becomes desensitized to the signal. When this happens, the body thinks it’s starving and sends signals to increase appetite and store more fat, leading to weight gain.
There are other factors that contribute to the development of leptin resistance such as poor diet, lack of exercise, poor sleep, and high-stress levels. A diet high in sugar, processed foods, and saturated fats has been shown to increase inflammation levels in the body, which can affect how leptin is produced and how it functions.
Another factor that contributes to leptin resistance is lack of sleep. Poor sleep can affect the production of leptin, making it difficult for the body to regulate food intake and energy expenditure properly.
The good news is that leptin resistance is reversible. By maintaining a healthy diet and exercise routine, and reducing stress levels, you can gradually reduce the amount of fat in your body and restore proper leptin function. Studies have shown that consuming a high-fiber, low-fat diet can help reduce inflammation levels and promote weight loss, therefore improving leptin sensitivity.
Other interventions that can improve the body’s response to leptin include getting enough sleep, reducing stress levels through yoga or meditation practices, and starting a regular exercise routine. Resistance training, in particular, has been shown to be effective in improving the function of leptin.
In conclusion, leptin resistance is a condition that contributes significantly to overweight and obesity, and its prevalence continues to increase worldwide. Therefore, it is important to understand its causes and how to mitigate them. Maintaining a healthy diet, getting enough sleep, exercising regularly, and managing stress levels are ways by which you can address leptin resistance and achieve your weight loss goals.
References:
Rosenbaum M, Leibel RL. Role of energy expenditure in the development of leptin resistance. J Clin Invest. 2014;124(2): 420-2.
Juge-Aubry CE, Henrichot E, Meier CA. Adipose tissue: a regulator of inflammation. Best Pract Res Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2005;19(4):547-566.
Halpern B, Mancini MC. Leptin reduction and its interactions with diabetes control after bilio-pancreatic diversion. Surg Obes Relat Dis. 2009;5(1):48-53.
Lopez-Jaramillo P, Gomez-Arbelaez D, Lopez-Lopez J, Lombana-Rodriguez HA, Paez-Canro C, Rueda-Quijano SM, et al. The role of leptin/adiponectin ratio in metabolic syndrome and diabetes. Horm Mol Biol Clin Investig.[Internet] 2014;19(3):167-176. Available from: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25403381
Consitt LA, Saxena G. Exercise training and insulin resistance: a current review. J Obes.[Internet] 2013;2013: Vaiycn858690. Available from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23533342
Vitamin D is a fat-soluble secosteroids. There are two main forms of vitamin D: vitamin D2, also called ergocalciferol, and vitamin D3, also called cholecalciferol. Scientific studies suggest that cholecalciferol is the more effective form of the vitamin. Vitamin D2 is obtained exclusively from the diet and comes mostly from fortified foods and plants like mushrooms grown in UV lights. Vitamin D3 is found in animal foods like oily fish and fish oil, liver, egg yolks and butter. Our skin also manufactures vitamin D3 upon exposure to light.
The Primary Types of Vitamin D and How They Interact With The Body
Specifically, vitamin D3 originates from a compound found in the skin called 7-dihydroxycholesterol when exposed to sunlight, particularly UV-B light. Vitamin D production is complex and involves metabolic processes that take place in the liver and the kidneys. In the liver, vitamin D2 and D3 undergo hydroxylation in the presence of mitochondrial and microsomal hydroxylase producing 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D), also referred to as calcidiol. This is further metabolized in the kidneys to produce calcitriol (1,25(OH)2D). To determine the amount of serum vitamin D, one measures 25(OH)D biomarker with a half-life of around 2 to 3 weeks.
Vitamin D plays an important role in bone health, calcium homeostasis and the immune system as well as the cardiovascular and endocrine systems. Vitamin D deficiency is also associated with type-2 diabetes, Alzheimer’s disease, osteoporosis, Parkinson’s disease, and cancer. Recent studies have shown that at least 20 types of cancers are associated with low serum vitamin D.
Vitamin D and The Mammary Glands
A recent review aimed at studying the connection between vitamin D deficiency and breast cancer revealed a correlation between increased breast cancer risk and vitamin D receptor genetic polymorphism (VDR). VDR genes regulate hormone differentiation, milk production, and calcium transport during lactation in the mammary glands. Data from two randomized clinical trials show that women with higher concentrations of vitamin D (>60 ng/ml) had 82% lower incidence rate of breast cancer than women with lower concentrations of vitamin D (<20 ng/ml). A comparison with the healthy controls indicated a significant risk of breast cancer to women with vitamin D levels less than 20ng/ml developed metastases, and 73% died due to the advanced illness.
Reference
Atoum M, Alzoughool F. Vitamin d and breast cancer: latest evidence and future steps. Breast Cancer (Auckl). 2017 Jan;11:117822341774981.
Folate, Vitamin B12, Vitamin B6, Choline
What is the significance of each of your four vitamins? What roles do they play in the body? What bodily systems are affected?
What is the RDA level for each of the vitamins? What is the upper limit for each of the vitamins? What are the signs or symptoms of deficiency and toxicity for each of the vitamins?
Where are these vitamins found in the diet and what may impede availability and absorption? How does the concept of food poverty impact a client’s ability to obtain these vitamins? (For more information on food poverty, click this link Sustain.
Hashimoto thyroiditis is a chronic autoimmune disorder caused by an interaction between genetic factors and environmental triggers. The integrative approach to autoimmune thyroiditis is a multifaceted approach that focuses on diet, lifestyle, and individualized supplementation. The practitioner should also aim at discovering and dealing with the environmental triggers that started the autoantibody attack against the thyroid (Liontiris et al., 2017).
A clinical trial on 34 women showed that a strict gluten-free diet followed for 6 months lowered thyroid antibodies, improved vitamin D levels, and improved the quality of thyroid tissue (Krysiak et al., 2019).
A review published in 2020 in the Annals of Agriculture and Environmental Medicine (AAEM) shows that scientists agree that there are numerous environmental, dietary, and lifestyle factors that exacerbate Hashimoto thyroiditis: including stress, environmental toxins, poor detoxification, gut dysbiosis, leaky gut (Cayres et al., 2021), undernutrition and malnutrition (Ihnatowicz et al., 2020).
Can Inflammation Reduction Help Ease the Symptom’s of Hashimoto’s Disease?
The dietary intervention aims at reducing inflammation and modulating the immune response, and it focuses on a nutrient-dense diet that is gluten and dairy-free. Research shows that consumption of dairy foods negatively interacts with the thyroid medication levothyroxine (Ihnatowicz et al., 2020). Regarding gluten, research shows the negative effects that gliadin has on thyroid antibodies as well as the high prevalence of undiagnosed celiac disease in patients suffering from autoimmune thyroiditis. A study published in 2017 concluded that in patients with Hashimoto’s high levels of anti-tissue transglutaminase and IgA anti-gliadin antibodies are related to antithyroid antibodies. These findings show that dietary intervention in Hashimoto’s patients is crucial in reducing the autoimmune load and preventing the occurrence of celiac disease (Riseh et al., 2017).
Research shows that Hashimoto’s patients share frequent nutrition deficiencies: zinc, selenium, magnesium, potassium, iodine, copper, vitamin A, vitamin C, vitamin D, and B vitamins. Patients suffering from Hashimoto’s also benefit from adequate levels of high-quality protein and omega-3 fatty acids (Ihnatowicz et al., 2020).
Diet and Infflamation Reduction
In my practice, I recommend the paleo autoimmune diet (AIP) to my clients suffering from Hashimoto’s thyroiditis (Abbott et al., 2019). This dietary intervention focuses on nutrient-dense foods; it removes foods that cause inflammation (for example, grains, soy, and peanuts), but it also removes otherwise healthy foods, like tomatoes, that contain compounds known to stimulate the immune system.
Paleo Autoimmune Diet Food List
Grass-fed meals, organic poultry, wild-caught fish, pastured pork, and wild game
Vegetables: all except nightshades
Sweet potatoes
Fruit (limit to 1-2 servings a day to keep fructose consumption to no more than 25gr daily)
Honey and maple syrup in small quantity
Fermented foods: sauerkraut, kombucha, coconut water kefir
Fresh non-seed herbs
Green tea and non-seed herbal teas
Vinegar
Olive, coconut, and avocado oil (plus fats naturally occurring on meat and fish)
Bone broths
Foods not allowed on AIP
Grains
Dairy
Eggs
Nuts
Nightshades
All sugars and non-nutritive sweeteners, except for honey and maple syrup
Processed oils
Alcohol
Coffee
Chocolate
Processed foods
Foods the patient is sensitive or allergic to
Lifestyle Intervention For Hashimoto’s
Smoking is a common risk factor in the development of autoimmune thyroiditis, therefore, smoking cessation is recommended (Köhling et al., 2017). Stress is another common risk factor (Köhling et al., 2017). Stress-management techniques like guided meditation, breathing exercises, yoga, massage, and cognitive-behavioral strategies can help lower stress response (Carlson et al., 2019).
While there are no studies regarding the impact of sleep quality on autoimmune thyroiditis, we know that poor sleep quality negatively influences stress response (Blaxton et al., 2017). For this reason, sleep hygiene is part of my autoimmune thyroiditis recovery program.
In recent years, research has investigated the role of the microbiota in autoimmune disease. H. Pylori and gut dysbiosis have been linked to autoimmune thyroiditis (Köhling et al., 2017). Therefore, a holistic approach to Hashimoto’s must include diagnosis and treatment of gut ecology imbalance.
References
Abbott, R. D., Sadowski, A., & Alt, A. G. (2019). Efficacy of the Autoimmune Protocol Diet as Part of a Multi-disciplinary, Supported Lifestyle Intervention for Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis. Cureus, 11(4), e4556. https://doi.org/10.7759/cureus.4556
Blaxton, J. M., Bergeman, C. S., Whitehead, B. R., Braun, M. E., & Payne, J. D. (2017). Relationships Among Nightly Sleep Quality, Daily Stress, and Daily Affect. The journals of gerontology. Series B, Psychological sciences and social sciences, 72(3), 363–372. https://doi.org/10.1093/geronb/gbv060
Carlson, L. E., Toivonen, K., & Subnis, U. (2019). Integrative Approaches to Stress Management. Cancer journal (Sudbury, Mass.), 25(5), 329–336. https://doi.org/10.1097/PPO.0000000000000395
Cayres, L., de Salis, L., Rodrigues, G., Lengert, A., Biondi, A., Sargentini, L., Brisotti, J. L., Gomes, E., & de Oliveira, G. (2021). Detection of Alterations in the Gut Microbiota and Intestinal Permeability in Patients With Hashimoto Thyroiditis. Frontiers in immunology, 12, 579140. https://doi.org/10.3389/fimmu.2021.579140
Hadizadeh Riseh, S., Abbasalizad Farhang, M., Mobasseri, M., & Asghari Jafarabadi, M. (2017). THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THYROID HORMONES, ANTITHYROID ANTIBODIES, ANTI-TISSUE TRANSGLUTAMINASE AND ANTI-GLIADIN ANTIBODIES IN PATIENTS WITH HASHIMOTO’S THYROIDITIS. Acta endocrinologica (Bucharest, Romania : 2005), 13(2), 174–179. https://doi.org/10.4183/aeb.2017.174
Ihnatowicz, P., Drywień, M., Wątor, P., & Wojsiat, J. (2020). The importance of nutritional factors and dietary management of Hashimoto’s thyroiditis. Annals of agricultural and environmental medicine : AAEM, 27(2), 184–193. https://doi.org/10.26444/aaem/112331
Köhling, H. L., Plummer, S. F., Marchesi, J. R., Davidge, K. S., & Ludgate, M. (2017). The microbiota and autoimmunity: Their role in thyroid autoimmune diseases. Clinical immunology (Orlando, Fla.), 183, 63–74. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.clim.2017.07.001
Krysiak, R., Szkróbka, W., & Okopień, B. (2019). The Effect of Gluten-Free Diet on Thyroid Autoimmunity in Drug-Naïve Women with Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis: A Pilot Study. Experimental and clinical endocrinology & diabetes : official journal, German Society of Endocrinology [and] German Diabetes Association, 127(7), 417–422. https://doi.org/10.1055/a-0653-7108
Liontiris, M. I., & Mazokopakis, E. E. (2017). A concise review of Hashimoto thyroiditis (HT) and the importance of iodine, selenium, vitamin D and gluten on the autoimmunity and dietary management of HT patients.Points that need more investigation. Hellenic journal of nuclear medicine, 20(1), 51–56. https://doi.org/10.1967/s002449910507
The Integrative Treatment of Thyroid Conditions. (2021). Natural Medicine Journal. https://www.naturalmedicinejournal.com/journal/2017-06/integrative-treatment-thyroid-conditions
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