Abstract
Obesity, the global epidemic health problem, results in chronic disorders. Melatonin
supplementation may prevent the adverse health consequences of obesity. The aim of
this study was to assess the effects of melatonin supplementation on inflammatory
and oxidative stress parameters in obese women. In randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled
trial, 44 obese women were randomly assigned to melatonin (n=22) and placebo (n=22)
groups. Subjects were supplemented with a daily dose of 6 mg melatonin or placebo
with low calorie diet for 40 days. Serum TNF-α, IL-6, hsCRP, TAC, and MDA levels were
assessed before and after intervention. In the melatonin group, mean serum TNF-α,
IL-6, hsCRP, and MDA levels decreased significantly (p<0.05) from 3.52±0.72 pg/ml,
27.12±6.32 pg/ml, 2.54±0.49 mg/l, and 3.81±0.29 nmol/l to 1.73±0.07, 16.34±6.32, 1.67±0.27,
and 2.79±0.29, respectively. Whilst in the placebo group the decrease in values were
not statistically significant. Mean TAC level increased slightly (from 1.11±0.30 to
1.14±0.45 mmol/l) in the melatonin group whereas it decreased slightly (from 1.13±0.15
to 1.08±0.21 nmol/l) in the placebo group. Significant differences were observed only
for TNF-α (p=0.02) and IL-6 (p=0.03) between the 2 study groups. Considering the improvements
in inflammatory and oxidative stress factors in obese women, it seems that melatonin
supplementation may provide beneficial effects in obesity treatment by ameliorating
some of its complications. However, further studies are needed to make concise conclusions.
Key words
obesity - melatonin - inflammation - oxidative stress - low calorie diet
