Irritable Bowel Syndrome Message Boards | Re: Syl re: Seratonin/Melatonin

Bloating and pain are common symptoms found in all IBS subtypes.

Oral ingestion of 5-HT and 5-HTP increases melatonin production in the GI tract.

I am not sure that dietary sources of tryptophan are the most efficient way to modulate melatonin levels. A melatonin supplement is likely best. It is available as a supplement in health food stores. Be careful to check the ingredients. I found that Weber's sublingual was problematic for me because of some of the added ingredients it contains (lactose monohydrate and microcystalline cellulose). Eventually I found a melatonin supplement that contains nothing but 3 mg of pure synthetic melatonin. I believe natural melatonin supplements are not available as I recall due to risk of disease transfer. If you try a sublingual melatonin product be sure to swallow it and not put under you tongue. You want it to reach the stomach and duodenum not be absorbed into the blood stream under the tongue.

The colonic transit of constipation-predominant IBS patients was slower than normal controls. Diarrhea-predominant IBS did not differ from the normal control group. Another interesting result has been reported. IBS-C/D individuals (IBS-A were excluded from the study) showed about 1/2 the amount, compared to normal individuals, of the metabolite 6-sulphatoxymelatonin which is produced when melatonin is metabolized by the liver. Furthermore, IBS-C and IBS-D men produced 1/2 the amount of this metabolite compared to IBS-C/D women. It is unclear what these results mean and if the decrease in the metabolite is due to a decrease in production of melatonin or something else. There is strong evidence emerging to show melatonin plays a role in the pathophysiology of GI disorders.

I noticed a change in urgency, a slight change in frequency and a general improvement in sense of well being. My wife says she notices the later change the most in me. Something else I have found is I don't have to take it daily. It took about a week before I noticed a decrease in pain. After about two weeks the pain was minimal. After 3 weeks I quite taking melatonin and the pain did not re-occur until about a week or so later. Now I am only taking for about 2-3 days when I notice the pain coming back. The experiment continues on

I hope this helps.

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