With their research results, Dr. Pierpaoli and -Regelson have proven that the decline of the pineal body with age and the consequences of this for our organism are not an "inevitable destiny". It can not only be stopped, but even be reversed. When "old" mice - whose pineal glands had already reached a progressive state of decline - were given melatonin with their drinking water, remarkable changes could be observed after only a few months:
· the function of the pineal gland was restored and melatonin production was increased,
· fur returned to being glossy and thick,
· sexual function was rejuvenated,
· the immune system gradually strengthened and cancerous cells were once more successfully detected and destroyed,
· intake of food and digestion were normalised.
Mice which had regularly received melatonin all survived their untreated "colleagues". In these tests, standard mice with a normal life expectancy of 24 months were used. The treated mice lived up to 33 months, or 30% above normal. This is equivalent to 30 additional years if converted into the human life cycle. The mice were also extremely active during this "extra" period.

Dr. Pierpaoli's and Regelson's explanation of this phenomenon is as follows:

". . . it has everything to do with energy . . ." One of the main purposes of the pineal body and its hormone melatonin is to protect the organism's energy system. Together they supervise this system, which nourishes the cells and controls the proper functioning of the whole body. If the body's energy supply is disturbed, all other body systems are tipped out of balance as well.

By controlling the conversion of certain hormones in the thyroid gland into a highly energetic form, the pineal body has a direct influence on the energy flow within the organism. Our body requires this energy to produce heat, which is needed to keep it warm or to cool it down. But it is also needed to produce more energy. The actual production of energy, however, happens on cellular level by microscopic structures called mitochondria. These produce ATP (adenosintriphosphate), which is the actual fuel of our organism. As we get older, our mitochondria are also ageing. They lose their shape and structure, harden, calcify and - most significantly - they lose their ability to regenerate themselves and to produce new and functional mitochondria. Thus ATP production gradually decreases, causing a steadily rising loss of energy. This energy loss manifests itself in the fact that we get exhausted more quickly, but it also affects all our body cells. The lack of energy actually strips them of their ability to repair and renew themselves. The result of this development is that our body starts to age.

For the production of ATP oxygen is "essential", being burnt up in the process of energy conversion. If the ATP production of the mitochondria decreases, a surplus of oxygen occurs, leading to the formation of so-called "free radicals". These are chemical compounds on a molecular level comprising of a "free" oxygen atom, which seeks to combine with other molecules in an aggressive way. Thus, free radicals may attack body tissue directly on a cellular level, which - in the worst case - may lead to the generation of cancerous cells.

As the pineal body reduces its melatonin production, the mitochondria start to atrophy and the cells receive less energy due to reduced ATP production. This energy deficiency also affects the pineal body itself and leads to a further reduction of its melatonin production. Instead of the essential and life-supporting ATP, the cells are now producing a real killer - pyrophosphate. This chemical compound combines easily with calcium - which is also present in every single cell - thus starting the calcification process at a cellular level. The same also happens eventually to the pineal body, and causes a further reduction in melatonin production. A decreasing melatonin level in turn affects the levels of other hormonal secretions - for instance the thyroid hormones. Instead of ATP, the cells are producing pyrophosphate in abundance, which leads to an increasing calcification of the body, in particular of the blood vessels (arteriosclerosis). Calcium deposits have also been found in other organs, even in the brain and in the heart itself.

This process, once started, ends up in a real vicious circle. Calcification, which commences with the reduction of the pineal body's function, spreads slowly but steadily throughout the whole body and ends up with the destruction of every single cell of our organism. In other words - The functional atrophy of the pineal body eventually leads to the failure of the mitochondria, the actual cellular power stations, which provide the organism with its essential energy supply. This causes a chain-reaction, which finally ends up with the collapse of all body systems.

Many years of research work have convinced Dr. Pierpaoli and Regelson, as well as many of their colleagues all over the world, that the decay of the human organism called "ageing" is not an "inevitable destiny". They have shown that even an aged pineal body can be revived and rejuvenated by the administration of melatonin. By doing this, the vicious circle described above may be interrupted, and a return to youthful health and fitness may no longer be just a dream.