What is Melatonin
The Answer Might Surprise You

What is melatonin? It is first and foremost a hormone that is produced in the Pineal Gland, this melatonin gland is located right between your eyes about an inch back from your forehead. The pineal gland, along with the digestive tract, is the source of melatonin hormones that we need for good health. But melatonin is MORE than just a hormone, as we'll soon see…

Melatonin is a Consciousness Altering Drug

What is melatonin but a consciousness altering drug!! The placement of the pineal gland- also known as the 'Third Eye'- is interesting because there are many ancient traditions throughout the world that have revered this spot as a special area of increased energy in the body and even a spot that has much spiritual significance for 'awakening' or becoming enlightened. And it's VERY interesting that powerful melatonin hormones ARE produced from this spot between the eyes that the ancients considered sacred for 'Enlightenment' – when melatonin is produced in the absence of light!

Coincidence?

Sacred Mirrors: The Visionary Art of Alex Grey

All of this might sound a little 'out there' and 'woo-woo', but there is really no arguing that melatonin hormones are directly responsible for the nightly altered states of consciousness that we call sleeping and dreaming, and it IS interesting that many ancient traditions seem to regard the pineal gland as a highly spiritual and energetic place in the body. It makes you wonder, what IS melatonin really!?

What is Melatonin
It's also an Antioxidant

Leaving the spiritual realm, we also find that melatonin is a VERY powerful antioxidant. While nutrition experts will tell you that brightly colored fruits and vegetables are the best sources of antioxidants, melatonin hormones are ALSO powerful antioxidants. This is interesting because western societies have had higher and higher rates of chronic illness and disease since the birth of the Industrial Revolution.

While this may be due to Symptoms of Vitamin D Deficiency from less sun exposure, massive exposure to Environmental Toxins, our high intake of processed foods and a million other causes- it could very well have to do with our constant exposure to electric lights at night, which causes a decrease in melatonin hormones- which means fewer antioxidants.

Melatonin levels have been shown to be decreased in almost every disease state- from autism to autoimmune disease to premature puberty, it seems that low melatonin levels occur with disease. Whether the Melatonin Benefits include reversing disease hasn't been studied well or answered conclusively- but it is interesting and is an excellent reason to keep your melatonin levels high by:

Getting to sleep early in the evening- before 11 pm

Minimizing exposure to electric lights after dark

Sleeping in PITCH darkness

What is Melatonin?
It's a Muscle Relaxant

So melatonin is a hormone, an inducer into altered states of consciousness, an antioxidant- and it's also a smooth muscle relaxant. Probably one of the least known things about melatonin is that it not only acts as a muscle relaxant on the smooth muscles- particularly those of the digestive tract- but it's also MADE by cells of the digestive tract as well.

Administration of melatonin has actually shown improvement in inflammatory bowel diseases such as:

Irritable Bowel Syndrome

Crohn's Disease

The digestive problems that accompany autism

Gastroesophageal reflux

As we discussed the relationship between chronic diseases and melatonin in the previous section, it certainly makes you wonder if getting the proper sleep at the proper time to produce as much melatonin as possible could help people with digestive problems. Sure enough, one study linked poor sleep to worse gastrointestinal problems in IBS and it's fairly well known that when Melatonin for Children is given to kids with autism, their chronic digestive complaints do improve. Again, what is melatonin but a smooth muscle relaxant, so this makes sense.

I hope you enjoyed my rantings about What is Melatonin, melatonin really is a very interesting and very powerful substance that is extremely safe with almost no problems of Melatonin Side Effects, Melatonin Addiction or Melatonin Overdose- yet despite its multitude of effects, it is still mostly only known as a sleep aid. But melatonin is SO much more than that and really deserves to have its spiritual and healing powers become more well known. Keep reading to learn about the the right dosage of melatonin for you...

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Melatonin Dosage

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