Don't get me wrong, I took melatonin occasionally for a few years and I'm convinced that it alleviated jet lag.
The biggest problem with the Yale study is that it was done in baboons. I don't know of any baboons who are Star Alliance Gold, so it's hard to generalize the results to humans.
When it comes to clinical evidence, however, the studies are unconvincing. There was an article last year in the American Journal of Psychiatry in which 250 Norwegian physicians received melatonin and flew to New York for 5 days. Another 250 physicians served as controls. There was no significant difference on a standard questionnaire for jet lag symptoms.
The Norwegian study, the Yale study--and others before them--didn't say that melatonin is useless. They just said that there needs to be further study. There was a great article in the journal "Sleep," that argued for long-term, double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled studies. It's the only sure-fire way to prove if a drug works.
My reasons for discontinuing melatonin derived from safety concerns. The Journal of the American Pharmaceutical Association published an article in which they compared melatonin on the market with the USP standards. Turns out that there was significant variation in the quality and purity of what's being sold. This is definite cause for concern. There haven't been a huge number of adverse events reported with melatonin, but there is great risk with dietary supplements.
Fortunately, the FDA now has an Office of Complimentary and Alternative Medicine, which is studying the effects of substances like melatonin, gingko biloba, etc. It's a small office, but a step in the right direction.
The vitamin E issue is similarly contentious in the medical community. Like melatonin, the jury is still out. The problem is that vitamin E can increase the risk of stroke but decrease the risk of coronary heart disease. The current research is trying to find the right dose of vitamin E for heart disease prevention.
[This message has been edited by Little Matt (edited 12-04-2000).]
[This message has been edited by Little Matt (edited 12-04-2000).]