Melatonin has been shown to have a favorable influence on the aging process, because it has an inverse effect with regard to body weight; food restriction raises the levels of melatonin and decreases its age-related decrease. With increasing age comes a decrease of melatonin production, which may have a connection to sleep disorders suffered by elderly people. It also has be shown that melatonin can prevent tumor development and growth. Interestingly, a study showed that patients with tumors had decreased levels of melatonin compared with healthy individuals.204-207