Effect of melatonin supplementation on exercise-induced alterations in haematological parameters and liver function markers in sedentary young men of Kolkata, India

Purpose Present study evaluated effect of melatonin supplementation for four weeks on exercise-induced haematological alterations and liver function markers in sedentary young men. Methods A single-blinded randomized controlled trial was conducted recruiting 28 sedentary, healthy, young men (aged 21-26 years) after randomly allocating them into melatonin group (MG) (n = 14) and placebo group (PG) (n = 14). Melatonin at a daily oral dose of 3 mg was administered to the MG for four weeks nocturnally, 30-60 min before bedtime as opposed to placebo for PG. Measurements were done in the morning on a weekly basis with a six day's interval between two consecutive sessions. Subjects performed a treadmill running exercise following a pre-designed trial protocol and blood was drawn in both before and after exercise condition. Alanine transaminase (ALT) and Aspartate aminotransferase (AST), two liver enzymes were measured in the serum while haematological profiling included measuring total RBC, total leucocyte count (TLC), differential count (DC), erythrocytic sedimentation rate (ESR), total haemoglobin (Hb) concentration in whole blood. Mixed model repeated measures ANOVA for independent samples was performed for repeated measures of two factors i.e., time and exercise with the level of significance set at p < 0.05. Results A significant treatment effect due to melatonin was observed in case of enzymatic activity of ALT; while a significant time effect was noted for reduction in ALT, AST, improved Hb concentration, decreased ESR, raised total RBC and reduced TLC alongside eosinophil, monocyte in response to exercise-induced oxidative injury in the MG. Conclusion Melatonin aided in ameliorating exercise-induced haematological changes, liver function.