Melatonin and Osteoporotic Bone

Ray Marks

Department of Health and Behavior Studies, Columbia University, Teachers College, New York, NY 10027, USA

Dr. Ray Marks, Department of Health and Behavior Studies, Columbia University, Teachers College, New York, NY 10027, USA.

Keywords: Aging; Bone; Bone Regeneration; Melatonin; Osteoporosis; Prevention; Treatment

Abstract

Poor bone quality which persists in heightening premature disability and possibly death rates among older adults, appears linked to possible deficits in the hormone melatonin. This overview focuses on the possible link between melatonin and bone health, especially among those affected or at risk for osteoporosis. Reviewed are relevant topical articles and past literature and research on these topics located in the PUBMED, GOOGLE SCHOLAR, and SCIENCE DIRECT data base, with a focus on those published between 2016 and 2021 using the keywords: melatonin and bone, melatonin and osteoporosis, melatonin and bone regeneration. Results show melatonin can influence bone metabolism favorably through different mechanisms, but its application in the clinical sphere is only studied very sparsely. Given the immense burden of osteoporosis, and favorable preclinical as well as clinical findings, more effort to examine melatonin in the clinical sphere is strongly advocated.

This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. (CC BY 4.0).