heat production

April 24, 2012 2:24 PM

Which one of these supplements is most likely to increase body temperature (within normal range): iron supplement (100 mg), flaxseed oil (2 tablespoons), or prolonged release melatonin (2 mg)?
posted by leigh1 to Health & Fitness (7 answers total)

Under normal circumstances, your body's circadian rhythm in the evening has two things happening simultaneously: a rise in melatonin production, and a dip in core body temperature. I could easily imagine melatonin pills having an effect on the temperature cycle, but I'm not sure a prolonged-release melatonin would have any effect after the first few hours. Here is a study about melatonin and core/extremity body temps, tied to the presence/absence of bright light during the expected dark hours. Honestly, I'm not sure how to interpret it for your purposes. (time-scale of pills, time of day and lighting of the environment, core or extremety temperature, and my utter confusion after just skimming that article are all factors)

So the short answer is, melatonin and body temperature are often related, but it's more complicated than saying you'd expect an increase. And I know nothing about other supplements.
posted by aimedwander at 2:44 PM on April 24, 2012

Response by poster: I'm sorry, I forgot to mention that this is an increase in daily temperature - I'm aware that melatonin would cause a dip in body temperature during the night.
posted by leigh1 at 2:48 PM on April 24, 2012

Response by poster: And it's not ovulation-related.
posted by leigh1 at 3:07 PM on April 24, 2012

Given those three possible explanations for a prolonged change in body temperature before getting out of bed in the morning....I'd say it's probably the thermometer.

If you're not taken your temperature before getting out of bed for the first time in the morning, then it's more likely due to slightly greater activity before taking the reading.
posted by artistic verisimilitude at 4:54 PM on April 24, 2012

If you have thyriod problems, Iodine and selenium. But large does of iodine (like people in Japan do) like 12.5 mg.
posted by eq21 at 5:09 PM on April 24, 2012

By default I'd go with the melatonin, since off the top of my head I can't think of any way iron or flaxseed are going to have any influence on body temperature. Since melatonin is thought to lower temperature, I could imagine that your body may experience a 'rebound' effect after an extended release melatonin wears off.
posted by jhs at 7:07 PM on April 24, 2012

Iron might increase your body temperature if it's correcting anemia that had your body temperature lower than normal (your "normal"). But this is an uncited idea from someone who has been anemic and very cold, not a doctor.
posted by WasabiFlux at 7:15 PM on April 24, 2012