This article was previously published on April 1, 2019 and has been updated with new information.
Magnesium is the fourth most abundant element in your body,first and one of the seven essential minerals that we cannot live without.2 It’s necessary for the healthy functioning of most cells, especially your heart, kidneys, and muscles. Low magnesium levels interfere with cellular metabolic function and impair mitochondrial function.
Since it’s also needed to activate vitamin D, a deficiency can interfere with your ability to metabolize vitamin D from sun exposure and/or oral supplementation. Unfortunately, deficiency is common, and research shows that even subclinical deficiencies can be dangerous to your health.
If you have recently had a blood panel taken, you can assume it will show a magnesium deficiency. However, only 1% of magnesium is distributed in your blood, meaning blood tests are not helpful to determine if you have a deficiency at the cellular level.3 Recent research confirms optimal magnesium levels needed by your heart4 and kidney health.5
Magnesium deficiency affects the majority
Statistics show that at least 50% of Americans are magnesium deficient, with some estimates as high as 75% overall, and as many as 84% of postmenopausal women are magnesium deficient.6,7,8 Other scientists who believe the deficiency affects the vast majority of individuals based on current eating habits, say:9
“[B]Due to chronic diseases, medications, reduced magnesium content of food crops and the availability of processed and refined foods, the vast majority of people in modern society are at risk of magnesium deficiency. “
The Recommended Daily Allowance (RDA) for magnesium is based on age, sex, and pregnancy status.ten While it can be difficult to pinpoint the exact percentage of individuals with magnesium deficiency, data has demonstrated subclinical magnesium levels contribute to a number of common health problems.
The number of people with deficiency increases with the aging population because older people tend to consume less and not as efficiently absorb magnesium from what is eaten.11
Digestive disorders, such as Crohn’s disease and celiac disease, can also affect magnesium absorption.twelfth People with type 2 diabetes13 or using diuretics may lose more magnesium through their urine.14
As the number of people with Type 2 diabetes is increasing and the age at onset is getting younger,15 The number of people also at risk of magnesium deficiency is also increasing. Type 2 diabetes is linked to a number of health conditions that are also linked to magnesium deficiency, including heart disease and kidney disease.
Integrated magnesium for artery health
Magnesium is needed for energy production and is a cofactor in more than 300 enzyme systems that regulate biochemical reactions, including muscle and nerve function, as well as blood pressure regulation.16 Magnesium also helps regulate your blood vessels and helps prevent calcification known as coronary artery calcification (CAC).
CAC is an indicator of advanced atherosclerosis, a common predictor of cardiovascular disease and chronic kidney disease.17 In 1948, researchers conducted a nearly 70-year heart study under the direction of the National Heart Institute.
Framingham Heart Study18 became a collaborative project of the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute and Boston University with the goal of identifying factors that contribute to cardiovascular disease.
Magnesium is essential for optimal heart and kidney health
Researchers19 recently examined data on magnesium intake in people without cardiovascular disease at the start of the Framingham Heart Study and followed them over an 11-year period.
They found a strong link between higher self-reported magnesium intake and lower calcification in coronary arteries, which helps reduce the risk of atherosclerosis and cardiovascular disease.
The researchers believe this may play a role in magnesium’s protective association in stroke and fatal coronary heart disease. Data also suggest a lower risk of abdominal aortic calcification,20 It is also associated with cardiovascular disease.21 Second study22 analyzed the associated risk of hypokalemia with diabetes and hypertension, which may contribute to impaired renal function.
It is hypothesized that subclinical levels contribute to the decrease in glomerular filtration rate. The researchers recruited more than 2,000 participants from the Dallas Heart Study. During a median follow-up of seven years, the researchers assessed glomerular filtration rate, biochemical parameters, C-reactive protein, and prevalence of hypertension and diabetes.
The results led the researchers to conclude that subclinical magnesium levels were independently associated with decline in glomerular filtration rate indicating impaired renal function.23
Magnesium is a natural calcium antagonist and has several effects on vasodilation, regulation and alteration of metabolism, enhancing atherosclerotic changes in arterial stiffness, which may in part contribute to causes heart and kidney disease.24
Magnesium for your bone and muscle health
Magnesium contributes to the structural development of bones, and mature bones contain almost 60% of the total magnesium in your body.25 Since it is involved in bone formation, subclinical levels may contribute to the development of osteoporosis.
Research26 found women with osteoporosis to have lower serum magnesium levels than those without or with osteoporosis. Magnesium is also a cornerstone of physical activity.27 Just as it contributes to heart muscle contraction, skeletal muscle also needs magnesium to relax spasmodic muscles and it is fundamental to circulatory health.
Magnesium is also important in energy regulation and plays a role in the distribution and absorption of oxygen in the muscles. The relationship between magnesium and circulation also affects your brain. Dr Maiken Nedergaard, co-director of the University of Rochester’s Center for Translational Neuromedicine, comments on providing the brain with much-needed energy:28
“Our brain requires tremendous amounts of energy and to meet this need, the flow of blood must be precisely choreographed to ensure that oxygen is delivered where it is needed and when it is needed. important role in responding to spikes in demand and accelerating blood flow in response to neuronal activity.”
Magnesium deficiency affects migraine, anxiety, depression
Although the brain is only 2% of your body weight, it uses almost 20% of the oxygen supply for metabolism,29 remained remarkably stable despite changes in mental and motor activities. Magnesium facilitates processing in neural networks and is used to keep the blood-brain barrier healthy.30
Magnesium has been shown to be essential for learning, concentration and memory, and for brain plasticity, or the ability to adapt to challenges.thirty first Additionally, maintaining optimal magnesium levels has been shown to be effective in reducing the number of attacks and the number of days you may experience migraines each month.32
While compared with valproate sodium, a drug used to help prevent migraine attacks, a randomized, controlled double-blind study found 500 milligrams (mgs) of magnesium daily as a prophylactic measure. effectiveness, similar to that experienced by people taking valproate. sodium, no side effects.
Anxiety disorders affect 13% of the population in the US33 This condition can be debilitating, and like other mental disorders, it exists on a spectrum. Low magnesium levels are associated with increased levels of noradrenaline, which leads to higher heart rate and blood pressure.
Conversely, optimal magnesium levels can reduce the release of adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH), which is responsible for the controlled release of cortisol. Essentially, this means releasing less stress hormones and regulating the hormones released.34
Optimal dietary intake was also inversely associated with anxiety and depression.35 In an outpatient clinic treating 126 adults with mild to moderate symptoms, researchers found that magnesium chloride supplementation for six weeks resulted in clinically significant improvements in depression. feelings and anxiety without side effects.36
Higher magnesium intake reduces risk of vitamin D deficiency
Vitamin D levels below 20 nanograms per milliliter (ng/mL) or 50 nanograms per liter (nmol/L) have repeatedly been shown to increase the risk of several health conditions, including depression and diabetes. type 2. According to the most recent study, vitamin D levels between 60 and 80 ng/mL (150 and 200 nmol/L) seem to offer the best protection against cancer and other chronic diseases.37
Adequate vitamin D levels may also help prevent or treat dry eye syndrome,38 macular degeneration,39 neuropathy,40 fracture41 and obesity.42 Adequate vitamin D intake also reduces the risk of death related to heart disease,43 and may reduce the risk of all-cause mortality.44
However, without adequate magnesium intake, any vitamin D supplement may not be as effective.45 because magnesium is needed to activate vitamin D, and vitamin D can trigger vascular calcification if magnesium and vitamin K2 levels are not optimal.forty six Higher magnesium levels can actually reduce your risk of vitamin D deficiency by allowing for more vitamin D activation.47
Magnesium – Supplement and Natural Source
One of the biggest culprits behind shortages is processed foods, which have unfortunately become a staple in the American diet. Some magnesium-rich foods that you can add to your diet include:48,49
|
Spinach |
Swiss chard |
|
Avocado |
Papaya |
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Broccoli |
Bok choy |
|
Vegetables beetroot |
Green radish |
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Seeds and nuts, such as pumpkin seeds, sesame seeds, cashews and raw almonds |
Fatty fish like wild-caught Alaskan salmon |
|
Dried seaweed or jelly |
Brussels cabbage |
Several interesting factors can affect your ability to absorb magnesium from food. Herbicides such as glyphosate act as agricultural chelators, effectively hindering the absorption of minerals from the soil in many foods grown today. Therefore, it can be quite difficult to find foods that are actually rich in magnesium. Cooking and processing further depletes magnesium.
Meanwhile, certain foods can actually affect your body’s absorption of magnesium. Danine Fruge, associate medical director at the Pritikin Longevity Center in Florida, high sugar intake can trigger magnesium excretion through your kidneys, “resulting in a net loss.”50
When it comes to oral supplementation, my personal favorite is magnesium threonate, as it seems to be the most effective at penetrating cell membranes, including your mitochondria and blood-brain barrier. Other effective ways to increase your magnesium levels include:
• Take a bath with Epsom salt (magnesium sulfate) because magnesium will absorb effectively through your skin.
• Using a Topical Solution – I prepare a supersaturated Epsom salt solution by dissolving 7 tablespoons of salt in 6 ounces of water and heating until all the salt is dissolved. I pour it into a dropper bottle, then apply it to my skin and rub fresh aloe vera leaves on top to dissolve.
This is an easy and inexpensive way to increase your magnesium and will allow you to absorb higher doses into your body without having to deal with its laxative effects.
Magnesium can be taken with or without food. If you are also taking calcium, take them together. If you exercise regularly, consider adding calcium and magnesium at a ratio of one part calcium to two parts magnesium in your pre-workout meal.
While the ideal ratio of magnesium to calcium is believed to be one to one, most people get more calcium than magnesium from their diets, so your magnesium supplement needs may be greater than calcium from two to three times.
