Enhance Life with Melatonin, Boswellia, and Rhodiola

My daughter has dance class three days a week. And, until this week, she spent the other two afternoons running with the cross country team.

She needs to move her body. She is happier when she is busy. She is strong.

Keeping her body fueled is a challenge. She comes home from dance class late in the evening pumped full of energy, not prepared to sleep.

As her parent, helping her discover and maintain a high quality of life is important to me.

Melatonin May Enhance Physical and Mental Performance After Sleep

New Study: Melatonin ingestion after exhaustive late-evening exercise improves sleep quality and quantity, and short-term performances in teenage athletes

Vigorous late-night exercise is known for increasing sleep disturbances and making it more difficult to fall asleep. Lack of sleep or poor sleep quality has been shown to affect athletic performance and recovery, cognitive performance, and well-being.

This study involved 10 male adolescents. They averaged 15 years old, and spent about 8 hours a week training in competitive judo.

They completed an intense workout routine, shown in research to interfere with sleep when completed in the evenings. Then they showered, ate dinner, and took a placebo or 10 mg sustained-release melatonin. Then went to bed within 2 hours of completing the workout.

The next morning the participants were awakened with an alarm. Then they took a series of cognitive and physical recovery tests.

After melatonin ingestion, the athletes experienced greater total sleep time, sleep efficiency, stage-3 sleep (the most restorative stage), and rapid-eye-movement sleep (dreaming stage). After melatonin the athletes also experienced less sleep-onset-latency, total time of nocturnal awakenings, and spent more time in stage-1 and stage-2 sleep.

There was no significant difference in hand strength or jump distance. But, after melatonin, the athletes performed better on the Yo-Yo intermittent-recovery-test. Mentally, after melatonin, the athletes experienced better speed and performance without decreasing accuracy.

Overall, with the melatonin supplement, there was better sleep quality and quantity. And there was lower fatigue, reduced muscle soreness, better attention, and better rating of general wellness.

Boswellia May Support Menstrual Function

New Study: The effect of frankincense (Boswellia serrata, oleoresin) and ginger (Zingiber officinale, rhizoma) on heavy menstrual bleeding: A randomized, placebo-controlled, clinical trial

This study included 102 women with high menstrual bleeding. During two menstrual cycles, they took a placebo or treatment for seven days after the beginning of menstruation.

The women were given 200 mg ibuprofen plus a placebo, 300 mg boswellia serrata, or 300 mg ginger three times a day.

The amount of menstrual bleeding improved in all groups. The groups receiving the boswellia or ginger supplements experienced fewer bleeding days by almost two days.

The quality of life scores improved across all groups, but was greater for the boswellia and ginger groups.

Rhodiola May Support Mental Well-Being

New Study: Burnout: A Multicenter Exploratory Clinical Trial With a Proprietary Extract of Rhodiola rosea in Patients With Burnout Syndrome

This study involved 118 outpatients. All were free from a diagnosis of generalized anxiety or major depression. But each had a "moderate degree of burnout with emotional exhaustion and reduced personal performance."

The Maslach Burnout Inventory and Numerical Analogue Scales were used to determine the degree of burnout.

Participants took 200 mg Rhodiola Rosea extract twice a day for 12 weeks.

Emotional exhaustion scores improved throughout the intervention. Measures of fatigue and exhaustion had significantly improved by day 7, and continued to improve during the 12 weeks.

Parameters measuring stress symptoms, "lack of joy," and "loss of zest for life" also improved. The supplement was associated with greater stress coping ability and reduced tendency toward stress-related depressive mood.

Supplements May Improve Quality of Life

Quality-of-life (or the feeling of well-being) scores can be influenced by many factors. The studies above showed how improving quality of sleep, hormonal function, and neurological function was associated with improved quality of life.

Once we identify hurdles to our well-being we can find ways to improve it. When hurdles cannot be removed, like the timing of training or existing emotional exhaustion mentioned, we find ways to adapt. That may be through changing habits, altering our diet, or adding supplements.

Thrivous

Clarity Daily Nootropic provides a clinical dose of Rhodiola Rosea. And Serenity Nightly Nootropic provides a clinical dose of Melatonin. Together, as Clarity and Serenity Stack, they work to enhance sleep at night and cognitive performance the next day.

Boswellia Serrata is a component of Tenacity Arthroprotector. In conjunction with Turmeric Curcumin, S Adenosyl Methionine, and Vitamin K Complex, it targets enhancement of joint and bone function for men and women. It may also support healthy menstrual function for women.