Episode #19: Melatonin with Dr. Deanna Minich

In this episode, Hannah and Victoria get to speak with one of their favorite scientists, Dr. Deanna Minich, about her favorite molecule: melatonin.

We discuss:

• The history of melatonin, in which Dr. Minich describes early experimentation on the pineal gland and a vat of frogs (🤯 yeah, us too)

• Early uses of melatonin and how melatonin was initially isolated for supplemental use before synthetic melatonin was created

• The unique antioxidant properties of melatonin and why it’s so different from other antioxidants

• The tendency of humans to categorize food, supplements, and interventions of all kinds into “good” and “bad” and why that’s so problematic

• Is there more to molecule than meets the eye? Could it be connected to our consciousness?

• Personal experiences with "dark retreats and their effects on the pineal gland

• The impact of constant light exposure on our biological age

• What happens to melatonin as we age chronologically

• The many uses of melatonin other than facilitating our sleep cycle

• The connections between atrial fibrillation, GERD, and melatonin

• Some common questions and objections to supplemental melatonin, such as:

  • Are there any dangers in supplementing melatonin?

  • Why it impacts some people differently than others

  • If there’s danger in supplemental melatonin stopping your natural ability to make melatonin

  • Are there differences between synthetically produced vs. naturally derived melatonin?

Read Dr. Minich’s latest publication on melatonin here.

Learn more about Dr. Minich:

Deanna Minich, PhD, is a nutrition scientist, international lecturer, educator, and author with over twenty years of experience in academia and the food and dietary supplement industries, and currently the Chief Science Officer at Symphony Natural Health. She has been active as a functional medicine clinician in clinical trials and in her own practice (Food & Spirit™).

She is the author of seven consumer books on wellness topics, four book chapters, and over fifty scientific publications. Through her talks, workshops, groups, and in-person retreats, she helps people transform their lives practically and artfully through nutrition and lifestyle. Visit her at: www.deannaminich.com.