In brief: Could melatonin calm irritable bowels?
In brief
Could melatonin calm irritable bowels?
Melatonin is a lullaby in the form of a hormone. Doctors believe that we get sleepy most evenings partly because the pineal gland deep in the brain pumps out sleep-inducing melatonin when it gets dark.
It's not quite so simple: Study results have varied on how well melatonin works as a sleeping pill. Still, there's little question that the hormone influences the sleep-wake cycle (the so-called biological clock). Many people take it to cope with jet lag.
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