A new clinical trial published in Occupational & Environmental Medicine found that melatonin supplements may help night shift workers repair DNA damage caused by overnight work. Forty workers were randomly assigned to take 3mg of melatonin or a placebo daily for four weeks, consumed about an hour before daytime sleep. Researchers measured urinary levels of 8-OHdG, a biomarker reflecting oxidative DNA repair activity. Workers taking melatonin showed 80% higher 8-OHdG levels during daytime sleep compared to the placebo group, suggesting enhanced DNA repair. Night shift work is known to suppress natural melatonin production and impair the body's ability to fix oxidative DNA damage, a process linked to elevated cancer risk. Researchers caution that larger trials are needed before melatonin can be formally recommended.
