Resumen de Physiology and Pharmacology of Melatonin
Discovered in the 1950s, melatonin is a natural hormone produced by our body. Its secretion is influenced by the alternation of day and night and by environmental factors. Because of its pharmacological properties, it is given many properties, some of which are still to be explored, such as antioxidant effects, oncostatic, antiaging, or a role in the immune system. More recently, more and more research on this molecule has focused on the potential hypnotic power of melatonin, nicknamed “sleep hormone.” Because of its pharmacological properties, it has many properties, some of which are still to be explored, such as antioxidant effects, oncostatic, anti-aging, or a role in the immune system. More recently, more and more research on this molecule has focused on the potential hypnotic power of melatonin, nicknamed “sleep hormone.” Indeed, insomnia is a widespread phenomenon in the population, and we find sleep disorders at any age of life. Insomnia affects nearly a quarter of French people, especially women and the elderly. Melatonin has a certain role in the resynchronization of our biological clock; it is wise to ask if this hormone can bring a benefit in insomnia, in a country that remains the leading consumer of sleeping pills in Europe and at a time when we find more and more a desire to heal by natural methods. Its efficacy has been demonstrated in the treatment of circadian rhythm desynchronization syndromes; this thesis aims to clarify the place that a melatonin intake can occupy in the therapeutic arsenal of the management of insomnia and to recall the advice promoting better sleep.
