HEALTH
INFORMATION
WHOLE
HEALTH
MAGNESIUM
BY JACK CHALLEM
FROM THE WHOLE LIVING BODY + SOUL MAGAZINE,
MARCH 2006 ISSUE
•
INCREASE CALCIUM ABSORPTION • STRENGTHENS BONES AND
TEETH
• HELPS WITH RESTLESS LEG SYNDROME
• LOWERS RISK OF HEART DISEASE • HELPS IMPROVE
MOOD
When
it comes to minerals for osteoporosis prevention, calcium
receives most of the limelight and all the rave reviews.
But magnesium deserves at least equal billing. You need
it to properly absorb and regulate calcium and both minerals
are necessary for strong bones and teeth. Magnesium’s
talents reach well beyond bone building, however. It plays
roles in more than 300 enzyme reactions in the body - more
than any other mineral - and it influences your energy levels,
heart rate, and mood, among other things.
However,
there’s a good chance you’re not getting enough.
More than two-thirds of Americans don’t, according
to data from the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Our collective
magnesium deficiency - which ups our risk of health woes
such as osteoporosis, migraines, and heart disease is due
in part to lower-than-optimal intake of magnesium-rich foods,
such as leafy greens, legumes, and nuts, says Carolyn Dean,
M.D., N.D., Author of The Miracle of Magnesium. In addition,
many of those very foods are grown in soil that’s been
depleted of minerals by years of unsustainable farming practices,
explains Dean. What’s more, extensive processing of
foods strips it of minerals, so the more we rely on canned
and packaged foods, the less magnesium we receive.
Soil
conditions aside, whole unprocessed foods are the best source
of all nutrients, including magnesium. But to reach the
daily recommended amount of the mineral (310 to 420 mg for
adults), most of us would benefit from taking a supplement;
a number of experts recommend taking 400 daily. “Magnesium
is so important that everyone should be taking it”
says Dean. “It’s essential for normal bone density
and muscle function, and if you remember that your heart
is a muscle, it all makes sense.”
HOW
MAGNESIUM HELPS
STRONG
BONES - Bone is a matrix of several minerals and protein,
and magnesium ranks right up there with calcium in terms
of nutritional importance. A recent study found that a high
intake of magnesium was associated with stronger bones in
both men and women. “Magnesium helps the body absorb
and regulate calcium levels,” explains Dean. However,
high levels of calcium in the diet without sufficient magnesium
may lead to the calcification of soft tissues. If you take
a calcium supplement, combine it with magnesium - experts
recommend two to three parts calcium to one part magnesium
- or look for a combination supplement.
HEART
HELPER - Supplementing with magnesium can help prevent
hear disease in a number of ways - by normalizing the contraction
and relaxation rhythm of the heart, reducing blood pressure,
and helping to prevent dangerous heart-rhythm abnormalities
known as arrhythmias. Magnesium also helps regulate two
key enzymes involved in cholesterol production, and studies
suggest that high cholesterol may be linked to magnesium
deficiency. In fact, promising new research shows that magnesium
may one day serve as a safer alternative to cholesterol-lowering
drugs such as the statin Lipitor. In a 2004 study comparing
the mineral with statins, magnesium was shown to be more
effective. Magnesium may also help lower dependence on heart
medications known as calcium - channel blockers, says Ron
Hunninghake, M.D., medical director of the Bright Spot for
Health, a nutritionally oriented medical clinic in Wichita,
Kansas. Used for treating high blood pressure and chest
pain, these drugs prevent too much calcium from entering
the heart cells, allowing the heart to relax. Magnesium
functions as a natural calcium channel blocker, says Hunninghake.
MUSCLE
AND MIND RELAXER - Magnesium is a natural, effective
muscle relaxant. “Developing ‘charley horses’
and restless-leg syndrome are dead giveaways of magnesium
deficiency,” says Dean. These painful leg-muscle spasms
are especially common in the elderly, who have a high risk
of magnesium deficiency, and in serious athletes, who lose
magnesium through sweat. By helping your muscles relax,
magnesium also helps your mind relax. The body’s stress
response triggers muscle tension, but when the physical
tension is released, mental anxiety is eased as well. (In
fact, the same muscle-relaxing principle is at work in anti-anxiety
medications such as Xanax and Valium.)
MOOD
MODULATOR - Magnesium can exert a calming effect that
goes beyond its role as a muscle relaxant. Your body needs
magnesium to make serotonin, one of the body’s calming
neurotransmitters. Recently, French researchers found that
a combination of magnesium and vitamin B6 supplements reduced
children’s hyperactive symptoms, including poor attention,
physical aggressiveness, muscle tension and spasms. Animal
studies have found that magnesium can also help ease symptoms
of posttraumatic depression and anxiety.
HEADACHE
RELIEF - Low magnesium levels are strongly associated
with migraine headaches, especially those that are triggered
by menstrual periods, according to research by Bella Altura,
Ph. D., Of the State University of New York Health Sciences
Center in Brooklyn. And since almost three of every four
patients with conventional tension headaches have muscular
tightness, magnesium might be helpful for these headaches,
too.
SUPPLEMENTS
AND OTHER SOURCES - Magnesium oxide is the most common
form of the mineral in supplements, but the body doesn’t
absorb it well. You’ll do much better taking other
magnesium compounds, such as magnesium citrate, magnesium
glycinate, or magnesium taurate. The best compromise in
terms of price and absorption is magnesium citrate, which
is available for a reasonable price at natural foods stores.
(Don’t confuse this supplement with high-dose magnesium
citrate products, which are sold in pharmacies as over-the-counter
laxatives.) You’ll have to read labels carefully to
identify exactly how much magnesium a supplement contains.
Look for 400 mg of magnesium - sometimes referred to as
“elemental” magnesium - not 400 mg of magnesium
citrate (or any other form). The former refers to the amount
of magnesium, whereas the latter refers to the entire compound.
An accurate label might read something like “400 mg
magnesium as magnesium citrate.” Hard tap water, found
in many parts of the country, is rich in magnesium, calcium,
and other minerals; not coincidentally, drinking hard water
is associated with reduced risk of heart attack. European
brands of mineral water, like San Pellegrino and Gerolsteiner
contain appreciable amounts of magnesium and calcium. You
can also absorb magnesium through the skin, in the form
of magnesium sulfate, a.k.a. Epsom salts.
SAFETY
- While the body generally tolerates magnesium well, doses
of more than 400mg can soften stools and may lead to diarrhea
(hence the main ingredient in Milk of Magnesia, magnesium
hydroxide). Dividing up your dose by taking magnesium supplements
two or three times daily might reduce the risk of diarrhea.
Also keep in mind that diarrhea is most likely to occur
with magnesium oxide, less so with the citrate and glycinate
forms. In addition, because the kidneys excrete excess amounts
of magnesium people with kidney disease should not take
high doses of the mineral.
MAGNESIUM
RICH FOODS - Many whole, unprocessed foods are rich
in magnesium. The foods below (listed in 100-gram servings,
about 3.5 oz) contain the following amounts of the mineral.
|
ALMONDS
(RAW) - 275 MG
BEEF
(LEAN, ROASTED) - 23 MG
BLACK
BEANS - 70 MG
BROWN
RICE - 43 MG
CASHEWS
(RAW) - 292 MG
CHEDDAR
CHEESE - 28 MG
CHICKEN
(ROASTED) - 21 MG
|
CRAB
(STEAMED) - 63 MG
DATES
- 54 MG
DRIED
FIGS - 68 MG
SARDINES
- 39 MG
SHRIMP
(STEAMED) - 34 MG
TURKEY
(ROASTED) - 26 MG
|
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