Melatonin Protocol for COVID-19

This new article from "Psychology Today" discusses melatonin and Covid-19. https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/sleep-newzzz/202005/could-melatonin-help-protect-against-covid-19 Here is a quote from the article: ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: ' This capacity of melatonin, to target this inflammasome that is so critical to the most serious and life-threatening complications of COVID-19, along with melatonin's high degree of safety and benefits for sleep, is drawing attention from scientists as a therapy to de-escalate the immune response to coronavirus, potentially reducing the severity of COVID-19. ' ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: Oddly, Psychology Today magazine is aware of the potential of melatonin for Covid-19, but our scientists that are specifically working on Covid-19 are silent??? I don't really understand how so many government agencies in so many different countries can be searching relentlessly for potential ways to fight this virus, but they just skip over a molecule that through research is known to block, inhibit or ameliorate many of the known bad effects of Covid-19??? Art

What brands of nanoparticle silver are good ones?

Ragaa Shabib, The only two products I have seen that appear to be AgNps or silver nanoparticles are MesoSilver and MediSilver : https://www.amazon.com/MediSILVER-AMBER-Traditional-Colloidal-Silver/dp/B00ADQ5VWS https://www.amazon.com/s?k=mesosilver&ref=nb_sb_noss_1 I'm not recommending either one, just saying they appear to be AgNPs. As far as I know, everything else is likely ionic silver as they are colorless unless you go to a chemical supplier who can probably get most anything you want, but probably at a higher price though. Art

What would it take to get this to politicians?

Dave, That is a really good question! I'm trying to spread the information around as much as possible about melatonin, but actually trying to get a politician to seriously look at and consider it is another story. What I have noticed is that the drugs that they are repurposing for use with Covid-19 patients are only marginally effective or not effective enough. Hydroxychloroquine is only marginally effective at best and Remdesivir, although touted by Fauci, is only marginally effective. This seems to be the case with most if not all of the drugs they are trying so far. It seems like more natural items like those presented here on EC are mostly ignored by scientists and the powers that be. The government is having to spend trillions of dollars to try and keep the economy going, but they don't seem interested in spending a few million dollars to trial supplements or vitamins of any kind. Our government seems so convoluted when it comes to Covid-19. Everyone seems to have their own agenda and alternatives, supplements, herbs and vitamins do not seem to be on anyone's agenda who might have the power to actually test them in patients. If I was in Fauci's or Trump's position, I would have a very small team of people scouring the internet everyday to find ideas that might sound promising and EC seems to be a very good place to start looking, but clearly that is not the case. They would rather pump their research dollars into drugs that are not really showing good results at all. Dr. Neel is, in one week, highly recommending that doctors use melatonin in their Covid-19 patients based on the very good safety profile of it, as well as a lot of research studies clearly suggesting that it is definitely worth trying and testing it. And then the very next week is already using it successfully in his patients. He's only been using it since the beginning of April and already has 14 patients on it. I think it is going to take doctors like him who are willing to suggest it to their patients. And if more doctors find similar results in their Covid-19 patients as Dr. Neel has, then the politicians will have no choice, but to start testing it in trials. In the meantime, we common folks are left to figure things out on our own! Art

Art, If someone does not have access to melatonin, do you think drinking and nebulizing AgNP is a good alternative?

Dimoune, Before I found out about melatonin for this purpose, my intent was to use the combination approach of inhaling and drinking with silver nanoparticles (AgNPs). The truth is that there is no clinical experience with AgNPs for Covid-19 or anything else, but the method of action seems likely to work, so I would have tried it right away myself and if I didn't think it was working or working well enough, I would have moved on to something else or added something else with the AgNPs just in case. Art

This is a reminder for people in the USA who might think that things are getting under control as far as Covid-19 because Trump is encouraging governors to open their local economies. The following will hopefully explain why that may not be the best move at this time! There are currently 3,897,925 cases of Covid-19 in the world. Of that number, the US is accounting for a solid 33% of those cases, but the US only accounts for 4.25% of the world population. There are currently 269,519 dead from Covid-19. Of that number, the US is accounting for 28% and again that is 28% when we only represent 4.25% of the world population. The US is clearly way ahead of any other country in the world by a very wide margin in terms of cases and deaths! The next closest country in terms of cases is Spain with 256,855 cases whereas the US has 1,286,024 or over 5 times as many cases! In terms of deaths, the US currently has 76,672 deaths from Covid-19 while the UK (2nd) has 30,615 deaths or less than half of the US deaths! Compared to the rest of the world, the US is accounting for over 28% of the deaths, again, even though the US accounts for only 4.25% of the total population of the world! If that does not give Trump pause to push for opening the economy, what will??? Art

Trump is not pausing. It's about the economy... and of course his re-election. The re-opening is happening, whether we think it's a good idea or not. One of the things that amazes me is that so many of us refuse to social distance and wear masks. The masks are about caring for others, in case we are carrying the virus without knowing it. The social distancing is caring for ourselves and for others. Yes, it's a pain, but what is that compared to slowing the progression of the virus, compared to saving lives? My parents' generation went through the Great Depression and WW2. Neither of these difficult times lasted for a just few months, and they couldn't quit because they were 'tired of it'. C'mon folks! We can do this!

Hi Kathleen, Yes, apparently the economy is more important than human lives, but that is truly short sighted thinking as this virus has proven quite adept at spreading from human to human so once the economy opens again and people are back in relatively closed spaces together with many other people, the virus will begin its voracious spread again. Trump said the other day on the news that Covid-19 has been "some of his best work", but the stats for the US show that we are leading the world in number of cases at a whopping 33% of the total cases in the world! We are also leading the world in number of deaths with America accounting for 28% of the total deaths from Covid-19 in the world! All of that, yet we only account for 4.25% of the world population. We have more than 5 times the cases of the next closest country to us, Spain. We have greater than double the number of deaths than the next closest country, the UK! If this is some of Trump's best work......? Once the economy reopens, those numbers will climb much faster and put the US even further apart from the crowd.! I guess we really are expendable when it comes to money! On the other hand, if you are living from paycheck to paycheck and don't get back to work soon, you could lose everything you have and end up homeless or you can go back to work and possibly end up dead. It is a no win situation for many people! Art

In yesterday's MedCram video (62) as well as today's video (63), Dr. Seheult goes into greater detail about the damage being done to the endothelium as well as the effects of this damage at same and downstream points, one of which is the reduction of Angiotensin 1,7 and the runaway oxidation that ensues. Today's video goes into more detail about the downstream effects of the damage to the endothelium as well as the massive generation of ROS. Melatonin is also a signaling molecule that upregulates gene expression of antioxidant enzymes while itself being a potent ROS, RNS and hydroxyl radical scavenger while having antiinflammatory effects when systemic inflammation becomes elevated. Melatonin has shown itself to be a protector of the endothelium which this video shows is damaged as part of the disease process resulting in downstream damage in this cascade of events. Melatonin also helps prevent reduction of Angiotensin 1,7 which would be useful in diminishing disease progression. Dr. Seheult describes how Covid-19 greatly reduces angiotensin 1,7. If that isn't enough, melatonin is also an inhibitor of NADPH Oxidase! This video series is continuing to show how melatonin has shown many pathways by which it can negatively impact the disease process of Covid-19. Dr. Seheult and MedCram are generating a very lengthy list about known aspects of the method of action of this disease. What would make a great video at this point is one that compares their list to the known activities of melatonin! MELATONIN VS COVID-19! https://youtu.be/DtPwfihjyrY https://youtu.be/Aj2vB_VITXQ

You're welcome, Kristie! I hope you find it useful. Art

So I went another night (3 nights) at 80 mg and I slept through the night which is unusual for me. I woke up a little earlier than usual and feel rested. So this seems to be the pattern from taking 80 mg per evening, uninterrupted sleep through the night and waking a little earlier than normal. I can live with this so I am about as prepared as can be now to use melatonin if I get Covid-19. Art

Is is milligrams or micrograms?

Sithina, Dr. Neel is using about 80 milligrams total per day divided into four (4) 20 mg doses in his adult patients, but I believe he actually has a range of from 50 milligrams to 100 milligrams, depending on patient's size and severity of symptoms. The doctors Hospital in Manila has reported using a dose range of 36 to 72 milligrams/day in their patients. Both locations are giving that dose divided into four doses per day to achieve the daily dose Thank you for bringing up the dosing as I wouldn't want his protocol to be mistaken on something as critical as dosing! Art

Lavi, Do you mean is the melatonin addictive in terms of sleep, the answer for me is no. I have taken melatonin for years on and off with no problems when I have stopped, but now I take it everyday to avail myself of the many health benefits that melatonin may potentially offer. I am currently in the process of a longer term test of 80 mg/day to make sure it will be compatible. I already did a three day test and now I am testing it for a month to two months to assume a worst case scenario. So far no problems. Art

No Lavi, it doesn't make me dependent for sleep as I can only speak for myself.

Anne, Good to hear that melatonin is useful for you! I took another 80 mg dose last night to confirm that Dr. Neels dose of melatonin would not be a problem for me and it went similarly to the day before where I woke up a little earlier than usual and felt rested. I slept through the night on both nights of melatonin at 80 mg. Art

Hi Art, So would you suggest taking a smaller dosage as a preventative or just have it on hand in case we become ill?

Hi, Annette, Dr. Neel has not as yet suggested dosing until symptoms and a positive test are in place and then using his high dose melatonin protocol until well and at that point possibly shifting to a lower maintenance dose of possibly 5 milligrams/day. Thank you for your question! Art

I refuse to consume artificial man made melatonin which can cause headaches, sleep walking etc..., eat cherries or drink the juice for natural melatonin. There are also softgel cherries.

T Hunter, You are correct that cherries contain melatonin and Montmorency cherries probably have the most melatonin in them, but they only contain miniscule amounts of melatonin. Here is some information on the melatonin content of cherries. Cherries, in particular the Montmorency variety, contain melatonin—about 13 nanograms of melatonin per gram of cherry. Recall that there are a million nanograms in a milligram, so a kilogram of cherries would contain 13,000 nanograms or 0.013 mg of melatonin. Based on the above paragraph, it would be impossible to get anywhere close to the amount of melatonin that Dr. Neel is suggesting. As mentioned above, 2.2 pounds of cherries would only contain 0.013 mg of melatonin. Dr. Neel is working with roughly 80 mg of melatonin/day or over 6,000 times as much as 2.2 pounds of cherries. It appears that sweet cherries have even less melatonin in them. On the other hand, most of the currently trialed drugs for Covid-19 have side effects that are likely significantly worse than melatonin. Art

Herbatonin is food made melatonin. Ed Jones Nutrition.com

Hi, Rhonda! Unfortunately, yes, melatonin can have different effects in everyone. Are you certain it was the increased dosage that caused the headache? If it was, your doctor may be able to offer you something to relieve the headache if you end up using melatonin for Covid-19. It appears that the melatonin course can be fairly short if it is applied at or near the first symptom or symptoms with a Covid-19 test. This is when Dr. Neel is applying it to his Covid-19 patients with very good results to date. Even with the headache situation, melatonin has a better safety profile than every drug that is currently being tested for Covid-19, so it is still worth keeping in mind as a potential option! Thank you for your comment! Art

Art, I have had a slight heartache caused by the Corona virus.

David, If you have Covid-19 and heart pain, you need to see your doctor at once and let him know, because Covid-19 has shown the potential to damage the heart. Covid-19 is nothing to be taken lightly as it can damage the heart and can be fatal! This is a no nonsense disease that has shown that it can take lives as though they are nothing, even if you are young! Please let your doctor know what you are feeling right away! Art

Trina, You sound like a great mom still watching out for the "adult kids"! Dr. Neel has not yet suggested melatonin as a preventative. In fact he has only given it to patients who have tested positive for Covid-19. I don't think melatonin directly attacks the virus, but seems to manipulate the immune environment so as to give the body and the immune system a better situation to fight and destroy the virus itself, while ameliorating symptoms and preventing an over response by the immune system which can lead to a cytokine storm or pneumonia. On the outside chance that melatonin joins the growing list of "scarce supplements", it may be better to save the melatonin until it is actually needed to insure that you have enough melatonin at that time! Art

Bern, When you say, 'I have gotten one', do you mean one bottle of melatonin? If that is the case, I don't know what strength the capsules or pills are or how many are in the bottle. Let's say that the bottle has 60 tablets or capsules and that each tablet is 10 milligrams. Dr. Neel is using 80 milligrams per day, so that means 8 capsules or tablets per day, so that means the bottle will only last 7 1/2 days. If the capsules or pills are 5 mg, then the bottle will only last 3 3/4 days. What I am doing for myself is making sure I have enough melatonin to last a month, so the bottles I bought are 10 mg and there are 60 capsules in the bottle. One bottle will last a week, so I bought 6 bottles for myself to make sure I am able to go about 6 weeks if needed. Remember, Dr. Neel has barely been using his HDM protocol for just about 6 weeks so he is himself still learning about dosing, but he mentioned that he has taken two of his patients down from 80 milligrams per day to 5 milligrams per day because they had improved very significantly. As far as when to start, Dr. Neel is starting his patients as soon as they show symptoms and test positive for Covid-19. He only has 14 patients so far and this is what he says he has done and seen very good results so far. In his patients who were showing significant symptoms, he said that they showed the beginning of improvement in one day, but he kept their dose at 80 mg/day. Art

Romina, You're welcome! I thought the very same thing, but I was previously able to do the same as the children's study that I linked to in the post which was 70 mg / day for 90 days to children with Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy. They showed good effects in that study and since I experiment on myself a lot, I decided to try it so I would know. Yes, I did have the melatonin hangover for about two to three weeks, but it slowly went away over time. The good thing is the high dosing that Dr. Neel is using is only temporary and that is probably a good time to rest anyway and if the treatment significantly reduces symptoms, I'll gladly take his dosing rate over the more symptoms! As far as I can tell about the high altitude sickness idea, the idea is interesting or maybe a better word would be intriguing, but I think it is unproven and as related to Dr. Neel's melatonin protocol, it doesn't seem to matter either way as melatonin seems to help the body recover on its own and fight the virus with the assistance of melatonin. This could help to achieve 'herd immunity" and offer help in the future should the virus mutate extensively and is not sensitive to the antibodies created. I want to consider this scenario in case the virus returns each year like the cold and the flu. If Dr. Neel is correct, melatonin may be the way to move forward in a relatively safe manner, especially if the economy is opened soon. Thank you for your reply! Art

Dear Art, Thank you for your information. I am over 70 and I sleep at least 12 hours a day. Perhaps if I got to sleep faster it would help. I am going to try some melatonin. You said not all can tolerate it. What would be the symptoms of that? I have ordered a product with melatonin in it. It has other things meant to help improve sleep. I think I sleep so much because I don't sleep well. I have sleep apnea. The ingredients in the product I ordered are: Melatonin shwagandha extract Hydroxytryptophan L-theanine Magnesium Zinc Arginine Lysine

Hi Jan, What is the name of this product you have please and is available in England?

Jan, Those are good ingredients in the list, but you may want to check with your doctor to make sure that they are all compatible with whatever prescriptions you may be taking, just to be safe! Be sure to specifically ask your doctor about melatonin if you do plan to take it at some point! Here is a link to known side effects of melatonin and this list may not be complete as people don't always report every single side effect they may have: https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/adult-health/expert-answers/melatonin-side-effects/faq-20057874 Art

Deborah, Zinc is proving to be quite popular as it is thought to disrupt the viral replication process and having sufficient zinc in your system without overdosing makes good sense! I ordered zinc picolinate because it has shown in at least one study to be more effective than other forms of zinc supplements in terms of bioavailability. That order took close to a month to arrive, so clearly plenty of interest in zinc! Earth Clinic belongs to Deirdre Layne and I am just posting information like other people on EC! I really like EC and reference it often! I will pass your thank you along to Deirdre and EC! Art

You are very welcome, Eden! Art

Dr. Brownstein has been giving his patients natural medicines such as iodine, vitamin C, zinc, and other protocols, and none of his patients needed a ventilator. He's got videos on YouTube. Some of his patients are even testifying about their experiences.

Art, Thank you for the great info! I have been following Dr. Klinghardt on YouTube. I think that you (and everyone else here) would greatly appreciate the wealth of information he is sharing. Stay well! Lisa

Lisa, Thank you for the tip! Art

Well, you can't argue with what worked for you in 6 weeks, Tom! Thank you for the ACV report! The only difference is that Dr. Neel is suggesting that his patients are already seeing improvement after a day of melatonin at high dose. The patient in the Philippine hospital with Covid-19 pneumonia who was about to be put on a ventilator improved significantly after just 3 days of high dose melatonin and they didn't have to put him on a ventilator and then was released 9 days later! The other possible benefit is that none of his patients ended up worsening to pneumonia after Dr. Neel started them on high dose melatonin! Art

Dear Art, Thank you very much for this fantastic article. You put so much time and effort into researching supplements and then give out your information freely on Earth Clinic for everyone to benefit from. A giant thank you from all of us at Earth Clinic. We appreciate you so much!! ❤️ ❤️ ❤️ A friend is asking what a daily maintenance dose of melatonin would be. She's buying bottles for her whole family in anticipation of a run on melatonin, thanks to your article.

Has anyone else experienced hallucinations when taking melatonin? I have used it twice for insomnia and both times experienced disturbing visual phenomena.

Rami, Hopefully your tolerance of melatonin is good enough so that you can keep it in mind should it ever be needed and hopefully, you won't ever need it! Art

Jane, That is a rare side effect of melatonin. For myself, I would have to weigh the potential benefit of using melatonin for Covid-19 against the side effect. In a hospital setting would be the best situation because then the doctor and nurses would be able to monitor you and keep you safe! As I mentioned in the post, some people can not tolerate melatonin, but the majority of people can. If the hallucinations are significant, your doctor may not want you to use melatonin. Art

Thank you, Ed! I'm listening to your podcast as I type! Interesting. I am at the melatonin discussion right now! Dr. Neel seems to be having very good results in his Covid-19 patients using melatonin at 80 mg/day divided into four doses, but I am waiting for the hospital in the Philippines to announce who is going to publish their science paper discussing what they saw in their Covid-19 patients. They seem to be having similar success to Dr. Neel in their melatonin/Covid-19 patients! Thank you for the links! Art

Thanks, Art. I will take the melatonin a bit earlier. But what about the combination of the Quercetin you mentioned. Is that necessary with the both together?

Hi Art and again, thank you for all your research!!!. My husband and I (not vaccinated) have been taking Melatonin every night since we read all your info on Dr Neel at Earthclinic, and when we finally got Covid in November 2022 it was for both of us very mild.

I would be interested in knowing your opinion on a potential side effect of this drug. There is the suspicion that taken every day as we do Melatonin may damage the retina over time. "High retinal melatonin levels combined with exposure to bright light might cause retinal damage."

I tried to google this but the info online is not much at the moment....

thank you so much and please keep up the good work!! Grazie mille from Italy!!!

Paola

Hi again Art, what do you think of melatonin powder?

Apparently Dr Shallenberg also uses melatonin powder with his patients. My husband and I bought a 10 mg melatonin package and the cutest tiniest spoon for the correct dosage (1/64 tsp equals 43 mg circa). Effects are the same for now, but I was wondering if in case of a covid viral infection, the protection of a capsule would be needed to assure effectiveness/assimilation?

Also, what protection against covid would you use during a long intercontinental flight, apart form the obvious mask/distancing? We were thinking of taking 20 mg melatonin/ every 2 hours during the trip and complementing with a grapefruit seed oil nasal spray ...how does it sound?

Thank you again so much for dividing with us readers such a wealth of information!

Thanks again!

Please bear with another question. I was wondering if taking melatonin powder WITHOUT a capsule (just the powder and water) would make it less effective? Stomach transit/acids could somehow affect melatonin?

Just wondering because the correct dosage seems to be of the utmost importance to fight Covid....so if I need to take 1mg x kilo but somehow the melatonin powder gets diluted by stomach acids and it is not so effective.....

arrivederci

Mama to Many,

This is all new to me. Borox, Melatonin treatments? I've never heard of these. I am curiously interested in these remedies. My question however focuses around your low platelet level. Have you discovered any natural remedies to build up your platelet levels to the normal range? I am really interested.

I just read this review of Melatonin. Can liposomal melatonin be used at the same dosage as high dose melatonin?

I am so sensitive to Melatonin. Maybe the MTHFR gene mut factor. But I'm on day 52 of covid, some days good but fatigue and breathlessness happens. Eating low histamine as I know it's inflammation.

Do you think I should up my melatonin even though as small as 5 mg keeps me awake and sometimes jittery. Would you if it were you? I have people saying to do 30 mg just to get over this.

What happens when you take Melatonin?

I'm curious because a few years ago I realized I could not take Melatonin even at super low doses of .25 mg but can NOT remember what side effects it caused that made me quit using it.

Art,

How does one take melatonin throughout the day without falling asleep? Melatonin knocks me out at night, I can't imagine taking it during the day and being functional.

Art, can you take high dose melatonin prophylactically? My DinL was just sent home with sniffles and headache, was told to get tested. She got the test, but it's 5 days for result. Should she start high dose now? Or wait until it's positive? I'd say now, since covid is a virus. She's a little bitty thing, maybe 105 pounds, but her overall diet is not great.

Mary Lou, how are you feeling now?

Yes, I am wondering how Mary Lou is doing also? She hasn't updated yet.

Art

Art,

I just tested positive for Covid and I am assuming my infection date was 9/4/2020. I didn't get the test results until 9/6/2020.

I'm 68 years old and in very good health. I do not take any medications and have never had a surgery. I currently (9/8/2020) have very mild symptoms, mostly sinus congestion, head cold feeling, mild headache and exhaustion.

I just ordered Melatonin and will place another order for sublingual melatonin as I believe I read that was preferred.

I've read all the articles that I could and the comments. Several of the lengthy ones I had to skip. I can't focus on complex explanations right now.

I see in the article about Country Life Assisted Living that they supplemented with Vitamin D3, Zinc, and Airborne Supplement with Vitamin C per collaboration with Dr. Richard Neel.

Could you provide the suggested doses using Vitamin D3, Zinc, and Vitamin C powder? (I have been alkalizing 2-3 times a day and supplementing additional Vitamin C powder, 1 gram and ¼ tsp baking soda almost every hour in between.) I've also added Quercetin (800 mg) with Bromelain (165 mg), and Astragalus Root (400 mg), and Lugol's Iodine.

I should get my Melatonin in a day or two.

Thank you so much for a quick reply.

Art,

Thank you for the quick replies. I hope you can offer suggestions now about a diarrhea issue that I believe is a result of the COVID.

About a week after I was released from quarantine I started having diarrhea (very liquid and sometimes explosive). It usually starts first thing in the morning and lasts for only about 1-2½ hours. Then I'd be good the rest of the day - sometimes a little drained feeling. Other than that I feel very good.

I'm thinking the diarrhea is from having COVID. I'm ending week 5 from the date I first experienced COVID symptoms. I have not been re-tested for COVID.

I tried posted EC remedies – ACV, Activated Charcoal, and Turmeric. None of these had any effect. I added Psyllium Husks and am beginning to see some slow, v-e-r-y slow, change in the firmness of the loose stools and for the most part they are no longer explosive. Diarrhea lasts about a hour now, and I've had loose stools in the afternoon for 2-3 days (which is a new occurrence)

I had reduced Melatonin to 40 mg a day and have returned to 60-80mg (depends if I can get all doses in). I take 1000 mg of Vitamin C two times a day. During the time I had symptoms, I took 1000 mg of Vitamin C 6-7 times a day.

Any suggestions on this issue would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you Art for your input.

I'm definitely staying on the whole Covid Protocol with Melatonin for another week or two.

Bill,

Thank you for your input. I have Lysine and Vitamin C so I'd like to add that. However, I can't find Ted's lysine and Vitamin C protocol. I've spent about over 30 minutes searching posts and don't know how to find the protocol.

Can you or EC post a link?

I am taking Quercetin but not Resveratrol.

1 Month Update

Art and Bill,

This is my 4th week and the diarrhea was worse near the end of last week, this past weekend and the beginning of the week.

I've went back on the full Covid Protocol for 2-3 weeks and just stopped a lot of the supplements on Tuesday, 10/27

I went to the elders of my church and was anointed and prayed for according to scriptures.

I felt God directing me to look at all the supplements I was taking.

This may have gone from a Covid related diarrhea to a supplement induced diarrhea as its gotten worse over the last week.

I know that both Vitamin C and Turmeric can cause diarrhea. Also, in Art's post about Ulcerative Colitis and IBD you stated, "The 5 mg dose is a good place to start as some people cannot tolerate melatonin ".

I've already stopped Vitamin C, Turmeric, Quercetin, extra Zinc and extra D.

I'm still taking 80 mg of Melatonin, a Multi, (1) zinc, (1) D.

I added DHEA, Colloidal Silver, and (3) tbsp. of VCO this week. I added Lysine a couple of days then stopped because I didn't want to add an additional supplement until I got a better handle on what is causing the irritation.

The diarrhea is a little better since I stopped most of the supplements, not so liquid, but not formed at all and still urgent.

After the first couple of hours in the morning I'm usually good until I eat something. Then I have a very loose, urgent movement or two or three and I'm usually good till the next meal.

However, my stomach is aching almost constantly.

I'm to the point of a hard decision. I don't want damage from Covid. However, I think I've taken the protocol long enough. I can't go on with this diarrhea. I had to leave work early twice this week due to the diarrhea and/or exhaustion from it and the stomach pain.

Since, I read Art's post on Ulcerative Colitis, I'm going to stop Melatonin for the rest of today and then pick up tomorrow night with only the evening doses per Art's“restful sleep” protocol and add Zinc at night - to see if I've built up intolerance to it.

If diarrhea continues, I will stop all supplements for several days to see if any others are contributing to the issue.

I would like to resume a preventative protocol, but at this time, I want to concentrate on stopping this diarrhea.

Both your suggestions are greatly appreciated.

The new study link below shows that melatonin use reduced the risk of testing positive for Covid-19! https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32533957/?from_term=melatonin&from_sort=date&from_size=20&from_pos=2 What will it take for mainstream medicine to start considering something that will actually work instead of the repurposed drugs that result in not much of anything good? Art

Hello, I am currently fighting COVID and am 7 months pregnant looking for relief. Am not seeming to be getting better by much. I am a single mom of 5 kids and was wondering if melatonin would be safe for pregnant women battling COVID-19? 🙏 I can't take care of them right now and am desperate.

Let's discuss the bad first 😩😩😩 and the good second! Covid-19 was originally thought to zero in on the lungs and the ACE-2 receptors located there. More recently it has been found that C-19 is attracted to ACE-2 receptors in other areas of the body and the virus is now known to attack much more than the lungs! C-19 autopsied patients are showing that it is attacking the heart, kidneys, liver, lungs, brain, skin, endothelium and is causing blood clotting which is causing heart attacks and strokes in patients who are otherwise asymptomatic and not considered to be in the high risk groups. Yes, the virus is causing much more damage system wide than initially thought. C-19 is causing a 4 times increase in Kawasaki disease reports in New York. The disease is attacking the vascular system and causing very elevated oxidative stress levels as well as significantly elevated inflammation. It also seems to be causing significantly more problems in black people who are not necessarily in the at risk groups, but possibly should be. C-19 is causing heart attacks, strokes, heart damage, pneumonia, liver damage, lung damage, organ failure, Kawasaki or Kawasaki like disease, rash up to full body coverage, blood clotting in different areas of the body that can potentially result in the need for amputation, neuronal damage, intestinal issues and death and this is an incomplete list! Yes, this disease is very serious indeed, even for those not to be considered in the high risk groups. Many of the heart attack and stroke victims are much younger than these two conditions are generally associated with, with no previous symptoms and doctors are only finding out these patients have C-19 when they start working on them and see the damage that is known to be associated with C-19 and that is when they are tested and confirmed to have C-19. Yes, this is one f'd up disease that is considerably worse than initially thought and it seems like new troubling aspects of this disease are being discovered each week if not almost daily !!! Now let's discuss the good! 😂😂😂 The good news is that melatonin works against this disease process at multiple levels of disease progression and at every place in the body where the disease has been found because melatonin can readily penetrate body tissues (including its metabolites) and easily cross the BBB to express its very potent antioxidant and antiinflammatory effects as well as other positive effects. Melatonin is a protector of all major organs and is protective of endothelial cells as well as the skin. Melatonin has anti-clotting abilities. Melatonin has shown itself to "upregulate the gene expression" of some of the bodies own very potent antioxidants such as Catalase(CAT), Superoxide Dismutase (SOD), Glutathione Peroxidase (GPx) and glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD) and this aspect of melatonin is very important because it is very likely that all of these natural antioxidant defense mechanisms of the body are being depleted very significantly trying to fight this disease because of the multiple areas of the body being affected simultaneously, so melatonin boosting their production can help to level the playing field giving the body more than a fighting chance to defeat this virus. Since it has been proven in autopsy that C-19 is attacking multiple areas of the body simultaneously, it is as though the body is fighting multiple diseases all at the same time!Never show up to a gang fight with just yourself! Melatonin's boosting of the body's potent antioxidant system is absolutely needed to deal with something worse than it would normally ever have to deal with in moderate and severe patients. Add to this melatonin's potent and broad antiinflammatory abilities and things are starting to look hopeful! To add a little more brightness to that light at the end of the tunnel, melatonin itself is a highly potent scavenger of Reactive Oxygen Species (ROS), Reactive Nitrogen Species(RNS), hydroxyl radicals, Hydrogen Peroxide(H2O2) and Peroxynitrite (ONOO). All of these radicals are thought to be highly active in C-19 and doing a lot of damage. One melatonin molecule can scavenge up to 10 oxygen radicals while many other antioxidants can only scavenge and neutralize one oxygen radical 1:1. Melatonin inhibits NADPH Oxidase which is a very bad player that ends up generating ROS in large amounts and damaging almost all cells in its path. Now let's add in the vitamin C that Dr. Neel is using alongside melatonin in his C-19 patients. Vitamin C is synergistic with the antioxidant and antiinflammatory aspects of melatonin! Together they are better than either one alone and vitamin C pales in comparison to the broad ranging effects that are melatonin, but adding it to melatonin makes melatonin more potent. That light at the end of the tunnel is looking brighter! 💡🔦💡🔦💡🔦💡 A couple of points I would like to make. Originally some people thought that inhalation of food grade hydrogen peroxide via a nebulizer or ultrasonic vaporizer would be sufficient to kill the virus and it likely will in the lungs if you use HP as early as possible, but HP is an oxidant and Catalase will come along and neutralize it soon enough, turning it into water and oxygen, which means HP will not have staying power and more importantly, it suggests that HP will never make it past the lungs to other areas of the body where the virus may be thriving. So I would not want to rely on HP alone. Though I am a believer and user of silver nanoparticles (AgNPs), although inhaled AgNPs are likely to have staying power in the lungs before being absorbed into the blood I do not believe that by itself it will be enough. It will require drinking the AgNPs also and that combination with melatonin and vitamin C, may just be what it will take to put this virus down as quickly as possible, in my opinion. Although I think melatonin and vitamin C may be sufficient, I think that the addition of AgNPs will speed the process considerably! Art

I no sooner got this list above this post complete and posted last night and I read the following article that shows that Covid-19 is negatively affecting the eyes too! Just when I thought this disease couldn't get any worse, it does! https://www.medpagetoday.com/infectiousdisease/covid19/85752 Art

Here is a link to a biomedical scientist who agrees that melatonin should be used in Covid-19 patients, just as Dr. Neel is doing. https://devinenews.com/biomed-scientist-believes-melatonin-can-help-fight-covid-and-post-infection-complications/ and new information regarding melatonin: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/08830185.2020.1756284?scroll=top&needAccess=true& Art

I ended up doing three evenings of melatonin at 80 mgs per evening in four 20 mg doses per night and it seems I was able to tolerate it with no apparent problems. I didn't really notice anything while taking it except that a cough I have had since the first week of February after catching a Flu/cold the day after Superbowl is gone. It was a choking cough when I would talk and would seem to worsen each day starting in the early evening. More recently it was starting first thing in the morning and worsening as the day went on. I was considering trying a lot of things for it, but I didn't because I figured it would just go away on its own. I should have known better because I have had a cough like this at least five times in my life and each time it took 6 months to a year to go away on its own. It is different than the productive coughs I have had because this one is like a spasm when I talk. I found that I kept talking softer and softer so I wouldn't get the spasm and cough to try and relieve the cough. There was no apparent phlegm at all once the cold was gone. Well, I am very happy to say that it appears that cough is now just a bad memory! The day after my melatonin experiment, I thought the cough might be gone, but now I know it's gone and I can talk at normal level again! Okay, I've always referred to melatonin as one of my favorite supplements, but it just went up a notch for me! That flu, in hindsight, had quite a few aspects that are considered Covid-19 symptoms, but at the time, February third, I was not aware of Covid-19 so I didn't really give it much thought then. Now I realize I had a sore throat for 3 to 4 days accompanied by fatigue, headache, bodyache and fever which I didn't bother measuring and that was followed with a cold and in total it took me a month to get over everything except that horrible nagging cough! I hope eventually that my doctor can do an antibody test to determine if it was Covid-19. That's the update for today! Art

Based on yesterday's MedCram video, there is a lot of C-19 related damage to cells throughout the body including endothelial damage plus blood clotting which is resulting in hyper elevated levels of reactive oxygen species and inflammation and ultimately stroke or heart attack in C-19 patients of relatively young age who may also be symptomless right up to the stroke or heart attack. Among all of the things that melatonin is known for, such as: increaser of the bodies own potent antioxidant system, oxidant neutralization and radical scavenging, cardiovascular protectant, anti-inflammatory, anti-clotting/anticoagulating, anti-ARDS activity, anti-ALI activity, endothelial protectant and blood thinning are part of its healthful effects. In my opinion, this video adds to the case for melatonin in multiple ways to help ameliorate many of these viral-related activities that are resulting in stroke and heart attacks in the relatively young, sometimes before any symptoms are apparent! His comments on hydroxychloroquine did not sound very promising. Link to Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=4&v=22Bn8jsGI54&feature=emb_title Art

Art, Thank you for sharing this!

I thought this would be a good time to add information to this post that explains what the science experts on melatonin think about its use for Covid-19. The first quote is from Dr. Russel Reiter and mentions what he thinks about what Dr. Neel is doing with his Covid-19 patients: ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: One of those supporting the idea is Russell Reiter, PhD (Professor of Cell Biology at UT Health Center in San Antonio). Reiter's thoughts were included in an online article last Wednesday. Reiter is one of the world's leading melatonin researchers and he is also the editor and chief of the Journal of Pineal Research and on the editorial board of 7 other journals. Last Wednesday, April 8th, he stated, “I understand Dr. Neel has treated patients successfully with melatonin. This is certainly newsworthy. Likewise, his rationale for the use of melatonin as a potential treatment for COVID-19 is important. A published report supports his rationale, COVID-19: Melatonin as a potential adjuvant treatment”, stated Professor Russel J. Reiter, Ph.D in an interview. “Dr. Neel's rationale for the use of melatonin as a potential treatment for COVID-19 is justified on the basis of the actions of this molecule”, said Reiter who was a part of this report that was published in February-March 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic, co authored in conjunction with several medical professionals in China. Here is an article by Dr. Reiter discussing melatonin https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/jpi.12360 Next quote: The following information is about two more researchers who also support this idea in their research paper titled, “Potential utility of melatonin in deadly infectious diseases related to the overreaction of innate immune response and destructive inflammation: focus on COVID-19.” The authors, Assistant Professor at UT Health Center in San Antonio Dunxian Tan, and a German Professor Ruegiger Hardeland, suggest that “The underlining mechanisms for the high mortality commonly involves free radical attack and destructive inflammation in numerous tissues and organs.” For example, the targeted tissue for COVID-19 is the lung, they explain in the research paper. “Massive inflammatory reaction is caused by the exaggerated innate immune response of the host against the pathogens. This hyperactive innate immune response is associated with the release of a large quantity of cytokines referred as a “cytokine storm”…..This becomes a vicious cycle; if this vicious cycle is not interrupted.” It goes on to assert that “All of the authors mentioned above believe that melatonin is a molecule which has the capacity to break this vicious cycle. Melatonin is a powerful free radical scavenger to reduce the tissue oxidative damage and it is also an effective anti-inflammatory agent to depress the “cytokine storm”. As a result, melatonin may increase the tolerance of the host to the pathogens and save precious time for the patients to develop an adaptive immune-response and finally recover from the pathogens' attack. In addition, melatonin also promotes the adaptive immune response by increasing T lymphocyte proliferation and B cells to generate specific antibodies. Melatonin has a huge safety margin and is readily available.”

My doctor prescribed melatonin as a sleep aid several years ago and I have had no health problems related to taking it. I take it every night 20 minutes before bedtime (5 mg).

Does that make you dependent for sleep?

Hi Art. I take 10 mg every night. I have COPD. I have tried to take a higher dose but I got a terrible headache. Are the effects different for everybody?

Art, Really great info. I use melatonin and tart cherry ever evening but I will add this to my son's supplement "cocktail" that I have given him. He is a grocery clerk. I give him the info, he researches it for himself, and then we have a curbside pick up at mom's dinner and I make him a to-go bag adding new supplements. I'm really thankful for this article. I need my people safe! I love the hope of this.

Thank you for this post, Art! I am wondering how people can tolerate 80 mg of Melatonin per day without being completely out sleeping all day? I have been talking 5-10 mg Melatonin daily for years but I can't even imagine taking 70-80 mg/ day. Wouldn't that cause sedation? Also what is your take on the latest findings about COVID19 presenting more as a High Altitude Sicknesses than an upper respiratory viral infection? Thanks a lot!

understood, I'm taking zinc as well and thank you for your site and info.

Art, Thank you for this!!

Deirdre, Dr. Neel has finally mentioned a maintenance dose, but it is for patients who are already recovering, not as a prophylactic because he has mentioned that Melatonin does not directly kill the virus. So basically he has been starting his adult patients around 80 mg total per day and then once they are well improved he will consider having them go down to a maintenance dose in the lower range around 5 mg/day, but he is the one making that call, not the patient and this is likely a very important part since you may feel much better before you are completely well! Art

Thank you, Deirdre! Dr. Neel has not mentioned any type of maintenance dose so far and I suspect he won't because the one patient where he tried to reduce her dose from 80 mg/day down to 40 mg/day resulted in the patient developing a cough which went away when he increased her dose back to 80 mg. I think this is what he is finding to be an effective dose for adults and so far has not suggested any type of maintenance dose. Melatonin can not stop you from getting Covid-19, but what Dr. Neel is finding is that it can help keep the virus from instigating the cytokine storm which has resulted in the deaths of patients around the world. He also finds that patients are responding positively to melatonin in just one day! A maintenance dose is not likely required since it is the higher dose that he is using in his patients that is actually making the difference. On a very related note, if melatonin becomes scarce as other supplements like vitamins A, C, D and zinc have become, it may make more sense to save the melatonin that you have until it is actually needed. Thank you again! Art

Jane. Yes. About 20 years ago when I took it and I felt like I was on an acid trip all night long. I tried it again (I'm in my 70s) and it only makes me dream a little wildly. I can feel after taking it what it does to my brain. I am a meditator so I think I'm just a little sensitive. Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't.

Awesome article, Art. I have a national podcast, the holistic navigator, where i interview dr smith, medical director of life extension, on this exact topic. to learn his opinion on dosage, log onto https://www.theholisticnavigator.com/podcast/arm-yourself-against-viral-infections Also, www.nutritionw.com has the best prices and only allows quality products on their site. ed jones...

Hi Art, I've been using melatonin 5mg in PM for sleep dissolve from CVS, but you mentioned the combination of Melatonin and Quercetin...?? ? where do I find that or is it not combined in the Melatonin you are suggesting. I have been using this from CVS, and sometimes it works and other not.. Then I just take one more at a later time of the PM, like 2:30am when I wake up and can't sleep. My mind is very active and does not shut off... I do wake up sluggish, so I also think Melatonin has an effect when one wakes up...but then it wears off.

Sorry, I forgot to answer that. I added that study into the post for the specific reason that quercetin and zinc are one of the popular combinations being suggested as a possible treatment for Covid-19, but it is unproven and untested yet. I just wanted to show that melatonin can be compatible and possibly synergistic with other supplements such as quercetin! Art

Deborah, You can try using a nationally known brand like the ones that Amazon carries and then that way it will be delivered to your door without you having to go to the store and this way you can lessen any possible exposure to Covid-19. I agree about the "melatonin hangover" that you mention because I have gotten it before, but it gets less noticeable the longer I use melatonin. It makes me feel lazy and I don't want to get out of bed. For myself, I take it a little earlier in the evening and that seems to help me. It is worth mentioning that the dosing that Dr. Neel is using in his Covid-19 patients is a relatively high dose and he is only using that dose as long as the patient is testing positive, so he is giving a high dose for a relatively short period of time. Thank you for your comment! Art