[HN Gopher] Melatonin may decrease risk for and aid treatment of...
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       Melatonin may decrease risk for and aid treatment of Covid-19
        
       Author : marz0
       Score  : 12 points
       Date   : 2021-08-30 20:19 UTC (2 hours ago)
        
 (HTM) web link (openheart.bmj.com)
 (TXT) w3m dump (openheart.bmj.com)
        
       | criticaltinker wrote:
       | _> A retrospective analysis of 791 intubated patients with
       | COVID-19 has found that, after adjustment for pertinent
       | demographics and comorbidities, those treated with melatonin had
       | a markedly lower risk for mortality (HR: 0.131, 95% CI: 0.076 to
       | 0.223)--suggestive of a profound anti-inflammatory benefit. _
       | 
       | _> Moreover, recent epidemiology suggests that melatonin usage
       | may reduce the risk for contracting COVID-19. A recent
       | retrospective study, examining data from 26 799 subjects in a
       | COVID-19 registry and using propensity score matching to account
       | for a range of covariates, found that current supplementation
       | with melatonin was associated with a significant 28% reduction in
       | risk for serologically detectible COVID-19 infection. Among Black
       | Americans, this reduction in risk was a remarkable 52% (OR=0.48,
       | 95% CI 0.31 to 0.75). _
       | 
       | _> More generally, it might be feasible to define a simple
       | nutraceutical regimen that could reduce the risk for COVID-19 and
       | a range of other viral infections. There is growing evidence,
       | both case-control and ecologic, that replete vitamin D status not
       | only markedly improves the clinical course of COVID-19, but also
       | is associated with decreased risk for clinically detectible
       | infection. _
       | 
       | _> COVID-19 epidemiology also suggests that higher zinc status is
       | associated with both a better clinical course in this disorder
       | and lower risk for infection.42 43 Especially in the elderly, who
       | are more prone to poor zinc status, zinc supplementation has been
       | found to boost acquired, antigen-specific immunity, while also
       | exerting an anti-inflammatory action; such supplementation of the
       | elderly was associated with a marked decrease in total infections
       | in a 12-month randomised controlled trial. _
       | 
       | _> Hence, it is not unreasonable to suggest that a
       | supplementation programme incorporating vitamin D, zinc,
       | melatonin and possibly additional nutraceuticals could reduce
       | risk for and aid control of COVID-19 and a range of other viral
       | infections. _
        
       | denysonique wrote:
       | What if it is not melatonin itself, but the fact that it helps to
       | get more sleep which generally boosts the immune system and has
       | anti-inflamatory effects.
       | 
       | Sleep length/quality should have been taken into account.
       | 
       | Have scientists rediscovered the importance of sleep?
        
         | dangom wrote:
         | Well, we could turn your question around. What if it is not
         | sleep itself, but the fact that it is related to the release of
         | melatonin which potentially mediates immune system responses
         | and inflammation?
         | 
         | The paper offers interesting hypothesis into why this could be
         | the case.
        
         | smt88 wrote:
         | The study is of intubated patients, I think they're asleep a
         | lot...
         | 
         | But I'm sure poor sleep habits are a risk factor for severe
         | Covid anyway.
        
       | Andys wrote:
       | After 12+ months of suffering, melatonin with high dose nicotinic
       | acid totally cured my long covid.
        
         | Something1234 wrote:
         | Can you provide proof of this or links to research? Making
         | claims like this is counter productive and only helps to
         | empower the antivaxxers.
        
           | xyzzy21 wrote:
           | Why do you hate free speech and open discussion?
           | 
           | Why do you hate antivaxxers - are you trained in medicine,
           | molecular biology, etc. or is this nothing more than orthodox
           | ideological position?
           | 
           | The scientific method and science itself is NEVER SETTLED.
           | And it is always advanced from discussion including anecdotes
           | that become more formal research.
        
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       (page generated 2021-08-30 23:02 UTC)