The Journal of Nutrition published a study by doctors at the National Cancer Center in Tokyo, Japan involving 40,000 men and 46,000 women, an reassuringly large sample for testing.
The 40,830 men and 46,287 women were followed up for 8 years. This study did not include an analysis of supplement use among participants. It focused strictly on magnesium intake from foods and dietary sources.

The study showed that higher intake of dietary magnesium was strongly associated with a decreased risk of colorectal cancer (colon cancer) in men. The study, however, showed no such correlation among the women. Investigators speculate that this discrepancy between the genders may be partly due to differences in alcohol consumption. Japanese men consume nearly four times as much alcohol as women, and that magnesium may counteract the oxidate stress of alcohol.

The investigators acknowledge that beneficial associations between magnesium intake and CRC risk may include the influence of other nutrients from foods, as participants with higher intakes of magnesium also tended to consume higher intakes of foods rich in calcium, zinc, fiber, folate, B-6 and vitamin D. Researchers conclude by stating “Increased intake of magnesium-rich foods is recommended if other studies, including randomized control trials, confirm our findings.”

The findings show a strong 52% reduction in colon cancer among men whose daily intake of magnesium was 327mg or greater, as opposed to the group whose intake was 238mg or less.

This was the latest of several studies suggesting a link between insufficient magnesium intake and colon cancer, including a Swedish study that showed magnesium reducing the chances of colon cancer in women. This study included supplements, and readers should note that Swedish women and Japanese women have very different genetic predispositions and diets.

Two things that are worth repeating here…

One is that increased consumption of magnesium  rich foods almost guarantees that you will be getting more of all kinds of good nutrition. Again, foods that are high in magnesium tend to be very healthy and nutritious foods to begin with. So, by targeting more magnesium in your diet, you are in fact improving your diet in countless ways that you do not even know of.

The second point is the relation between alcohol and magnesium. While not mentioned by the doctors in the study above, alcohol consumption is know to decrease the magnesium levels in your cells. Obviously, eating a magnesium rich diet would help to counteract this. This may have also played a role in the Japanese study, as Japanese men do tend to drink much more than Japanese women (though many Japanese women are surprisingly strong drinkers as well).

Keep this in mind if you drink more than you should, and at least try to balance it out with a healthy diet of foods high in magnesium.

At least sometimes.

This shouldn’t be a surprise, despite the demonization of fat, it has been a staple part of the human diet dating back to dawn of hunting and fire. Indeed, insufficient fat was a much bigger concern throughout most of history. As always, abundance turns the world upside down, and fat got on the wrong side of many dieticians, not to mention dieters.

Well, here’s a reason to make sure you have at least some fat in your diet. But, before you get too exited, evidence has shown that excess fat can actually block the absorption of magnesium.

So here goes – things that help you absorb more magnesium:

FAT

A study by the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition (Vol. 80, No. 2, 396-403, August 2004) looked at a small group of people to compare their absorption of carotenoids when eating salads with fat-free dressing as opposed to regular salad dressing with oil. Lo and behold, those who went fat-free absorbed almost no carotenoids, suggesting that the fat was needed for the body to access the nutrients.

I am very much opposed to “fat-free” concoctions for a number of reasons, not least being the manufactured crap they use to trick your body into tasting fat. Here’s another. If you’re worried about too much fat, do the old fashioned thing and reduce your portions. Your portions may be small, but at least they’ll be real, delicious and healthy.

VITAMIN C

Often cited as assisting magnesium absorption, there is very little evidence either way. But, since vitamin C is generally good for you, I’d rather err on the side of taking my supplements.

VITAMIN D

A 1972 study in the International Urology and Nephrology Journal in the Netherlands suggested that vitamin D could be helpful in assisting patients who needed greater absorption of magnesium through the intestine. This has been backed up by other studies, including “The Journal of Nutrition” study published in 1991.

However, and this is a big “however,” the 1991 study showed that vitamin D greatly increased the excretion of magnesium through the urine!

Easy come, easy go.

The jury is out on Vitamin D, but at the very least vitamin D supplements would seem to be unnecessary for magnesium absorption.

CALCIUM

This is a biggy. Many websites will tell you that calium is a magnesium antagonist, inhibiting its entry into cells. Other sites will tell you that they need each other. Magnesium helps calcium to work, and vice versa. They are in fact friends.

Not to confuse you, but all of the above appears to be true. Maybe it’s best to think of calcium of magnesium as a turbulent married couple (or even Tweedledee and Tweedledum)- not always helpful to each other, yet they both need the other. There’s a fine balance between the blow out fights, the affairs, and the love and support.

In the case of magnesium and calcium, many people have decided that the ration of 2 parts calcium to one part magnesium is this perfect ration.

This 2 to 1 ratio appears to be plucked out of thin air.

In fact, in Japan, which has a very low rate of heart disease, the ration is closer to 1/1.

The only thing I can say here is to take it easy on the calcium supplements.

VITAMIN B6

Long term, and massive doses, of oral vitamin B6 appear to boost magnesium levels. Since massive doses of anything should only be administered by a competent physician, just put this in the back of your mind. B6 shots will temporarily boost magnesium levels, and at the same time crash your calcium levels. So while B6 does encourage magnesium retention, it’s not something you’d want to try lightly.

A GOOD MEAL and MINERAL WATER

If you’re getting your magnesium from mineral water, a 2002 study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition showed that, while 50% of the water’s magnesium was absorbed when drunk without food, that amount greatly increased when the water was taken with a meal. To which we say “bon apetit!”

Going back to the fat, since most magnesium rich nuts, such as almonds and cashews, contain oil, you’re probably better off munching on them. So far as other supplements to boost your magnesium absorption, just forget it. Keep your consumption of alcohol, caffeine and carbonated drinks to a minimum, eat fresh foods, and especially green leafy things. Don’t go into mad scientist mode trying to make the perfect supplement concoction. Eat foods high in magnesium and enjoy life!

Is Magnesium Safe During Pregnancy?

As long as you don’t overdo it, yes. The United States daily requirements for magnesium are actually increased in pregnant women as follows:

Adult Female: 300mg

Pregnant Female: 320mg

Breastfeeding Female: 350mg

That’s too little according to many sources. The Baby Center goes even farther:

Pregnant women, 19 to 30 years of age: 350 milligrams (mg) of magnesium per day
Pregnant, 18 and younger: 400 mg
Pregnant, 31 and older: 360 mg
Breastfeeding women, 19 to 30: 310 mg
Breastfeeding, 18 and younger: 360 mg
Breastfeeding, 31 and older: 320 mg

There is some evidence that magnesium helps prevent the uterus from contracting too soon, though this is still inconclusive. Magnesium certainly helps prevent cramps, though.

Magnesium citrate, on the other hand, is something that the FDA recommends taking only when the benefits outweigh the risks.

In BJOG: An International Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology in August 2007, two studies are cited. The first study concluded:

“Additional magnesium appeared to benefit the fetus during labour. Significantly fewer showed fetal heart rate irregularities, meconium-stained liquor and partogram abnormalities. The supplemented group also had fewer late stillbirths either before or during labour.”

“It must be stressed that these secondary findings, although of interest, need to be substantiated by further work. Until then, supplementation cannot be recommended but poorly nourished women should be encouraged to eat a diet that contains adequate magnesium, in particular brown – rather than white – bread.”

The second study had the following comments:

“In our commentary, we recommend further research to find out whether improving calcium intake from before pregnancy might reduce not only blood pressure, but associated problems such as protein in the urine as well. We suggest that fortification of staple foods might make the benefits of adequate calcium intake available to all pregnant women, not only those with access to antenatal care.”

“While these studies show that the consumption of certain minerals during pregnancy results in favourable outcomes for mother or baby, it must be stressed that in these studies, the intake of supplements are carefully measured.”

“Women should attend their antenatal clinics so that tests identifying problems can be carried out. If they are interested to know more about supplementation, they should speak to their GPs and midwives for further advice.”

“We should note that women who do not have a deficiency in magnesium or calcium need to be careful about taking extra supplements if they don’t need it.”

So, while magnesium looked like a plus, these were undernourished women in the study. Assuming you have a healthy diet, you may want to think twice about using magnesium supplements.

There are several other studies, and while most suggest that magnesium is  beneficial for the fetus, almost all balance that by saying that the results for well-nourished women may be different.

So What to Do?

In light of the research, try eating better. An extra serving of spinach, nuts or halibut each day may do wonders. If you really feel the need to take supplements, at least try to make sure the dosage is not much over the RDA of 350mg.

In a sense, this is a new way to supplement the magnesium your body needs. Yet, in another sense, it is a very old way. Epsom salts were discovered when the town of Epsom in the south of England became famous for its bath waters many centuries ago. It wasn’t too long before people learned to boil down the water to extract the “salts” for their own use. The active ingredient in the salts was magnesium sulfate.

Epsom salt baths and poultices have since been used to treat everything from sore feet, muscle pain and skin blemished to asthma. Unlike oral magnesium supplements, epsom salts and transdermal magnesium have a long history of use.

This is what led me to look at transdermal magnesium oil.

First off, though, this magnesium oil is actually magnesium chloride rather than the magnesium sulfate used in epson salts – and is a much more effective delivery of magnesium. Yet, what research there is has shown that transdermal application has real potential. Dr. Norman Shealy, MD, Ph.D. is a neurosurgeon who specializes in pain treatments. His research showed positive results achieved with transdermal magnesium supplements in pain treatment and headaches. In addition, the transdermal application completely avoided the common problem of diarrhea that is encountered when using oral supplements. (Not to mention the real question of the additives that are used with many oral supplements, which may be dangerous themselves.) In his research, the patients used either foot baths or spray-on applications over the whole body.

Positive results reported from transdermal magnesium include reduced anxiety, better sleep, reduced tooth decay, smoother skin, reduced muscle pain and more (most of which are explained elsewhere in this website).

Why magnesium chloride instead of the magnesium sulfate found in epsom salts?

One answer is that magnesium sulfate is rapidly excreted from the body by the kidneys, making many of the benefits of epsom salts short-lived. On the other hand, magnesium chloride, which is found in unrefined sea salt, is much more easily metabolized by the body.

There are many positive reports from doctors and people who use transdermal magnesium, and I am rather swayed by it myself. Still, the skeptic in me wants to see what government agencies say, which tends to take a very restrictive and conservative view toward these things. Unfortunately, all I could come up with was the FDA saying that transdermal application was considered a “new” treatment.

Still, since the very same agency already recognizes the value of magnesium therapy in many areas, the only question is whether transdermal is a viable option in addition to dietary sources of magnesium. Scouring various forums shoes that people are really delighted with the results. Remarkably, I have not seen any negative reports from users at all.

I will report on my own experience, and happy to share with others here. Are you using transdermal magnesium? For what? How is it working?

If you would like to try for yourself, this company (Ancient Minerals) provides a great source of magnesium oil and bath supplements.

Comments are open…

Maybe it’s a happy coincidence, but foods high in magnesium also tend to be incredibly healthy. In that vein, two studies by Harvard researchers suggested that a diet of magnesium rich foods can help prevent the onset of Type II diabetes.

The 2007 National Diabetes Fact Sheet estimates that 23.6 million people in the USA suffer from diabetes, the vast majority of those being Type II. It was also the 7th leading cause of death in the USA in 2006.

Two separate teams of researchers at the Harvard School of Public Health and Harvard Medical School (HMS) published their findings on magnesium and the associated reduced type II diabetes risk in the January 2004 issue of Diabetes Care.

One study used data from the Women’s Health Study (WHS) to track 38,025 women from 1993 through 1999. The other study looked at 85,060 women identified by the Nurses Health Study (NHS), and who were tracked for 18 years, and 42,872 men chosen from the Health Professionals Follow-Up Study who were tracked for 12 years.

The participants in both studies were adults. None had any personal history of diabetes, cardiovascular disease or cancer.

Magnesium was shown to have played a positive role in reducing the risk of type II diabetes in both studies. The WHS team concluded that only overweight and obese women would have a reduced risk of type II diabetes onset with increased magnesium intake, while the NHS study found that men and women of all weight groups would have decreased type II diabetes risk.

HMS Assistant Professor of Medicine Simin Liu, the study’s author, said he believed the studies differed because of differing definitions of “overweight.” In the WHS study, a woman was considered overweight if her BMI (total body fat), was above 25, which is the lower limit of an overweight categorization as defined by the National Institute of Health.

The NHS study, though, used a BMI of 27 to define an overweight person. HMS Assistant Professor of Medicine Frank B. Hu, the study’s author, said this was because 27 is the median BMI for overweight people. He added that his findings on dietary magnesium intake were independent of BMI and would not have changed with a different BMI index. He defended his study as the more accurate study because of the larger pool of participants in the NHS group.

In spite of these disagreements, both studies agreed that the general population would benefit from increased dietary magnesium intake, and that Americans generally fall short of the recommended levels of magnesium rich foods in their diet. This has been one factor suggested as a cause of the increasing cases of type II diabetes in the population.

A previous Harvard study, published in the Journal of the American College of Nutrition, suggested that higher dietary magnesium intake may reduce the risk of developing type II diabetes, because women with higher magnesium consumption tend to have greater insulin sensitivity. Decreased insulin sensitivity, also called insulin fasting, is the immediate cause of type II diabetes.

“The primary concern here is not which group is affected the most,” Hu commented“Whether you are overweight or obese or not, you need enough magnesium.”

Magnesium Supplements Do Not Have This Same Effect

Even while magnesium rich foods have shown a positive effect in preventing diabetes, the studies further found that multivitamins and other magnesium supplements have not shown similar effects.

“The NHS study didn’t show any supplemental effect of magnesium, only of magnesium-rich foods,” said Dr. Liu.

“This suggests that there may be something else in those foods that works with magnesium to reduce diabetes risk. For now, I can only recommend foods that are rich in magnesium.”

Magnesium rich foods include whole grains, nuts, and green leafy vegetables, broccoli, tofu and other items.

Hu and Liu both agreed there should be continued research to better determine the effects of magnesium and magnesium supplements on type II diabetes.

You betcha!

Magnesium Filled Chocolate

Benefits of Chocolate

Magnesium in Chocolate

One of the benefits of chocolate is significant amounts of magnesium. Peter Meisel, of the Department of
Pharmacology, Ernst Moritz Arndt University Greifswald, Greifswald, Germany, says “a bar of this chocolate supplies the recommended daily allowance of magnesium.”

Jean Mayer, of the USDA Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging (J.B.B.), Tufts University, Boston, Mass., said “Consumption of flavanol-rich dark chocolate (DC) has been shown to decrease blood pressure (BP) and insulin resistance in healthy subjects.

Estimates range from over 100 mg of magnesium per 100 grams of chocolate, but lets start with the cocao bean. At 131 mg per 100 grams, raw cocoa powder, which is extracted from the cocao bean with the fats removed, would seem to be the richest natural source of magnesium we know of. That’s great…but who eats raw cocoa powder? It’s more reasonable to look at 25-30 mgs of magnesium in your chocolate, the kind you buy at the store, and that all depends on the cocoa content. 70% or higher cocoa content chocolate is a good snack. This applies specifically to dark chocolate, not milk chocolate.

Milk chocolate only has about 25% of the magnesium that dark chocolate does.

That hot cocoa you drink on a cool morning does more than just satisfy a sweet tooth, as long as it is rich in cocoa powder. (In fact coconut milk with cocoa is another super magnesium concoction-and tasty!)

This would seem to be to good to be true, but it has been sufficiently verified to gain the acceptance of the medical community.

A new study, which involved a review of three prior studies, suggests eating about a bar of chocolate a week can help cut the risk of stroke and lower the risk of death after a stroke. Neurologist Gustavo Saposnik at St. Michael’s Hospital, University of Toronto says the evidence is still limited, but he suggests further investigation.

One study they looked at found that 44,489 people who ate one serving of chocolate per week were 22% less likely tohave a stroke than people who ate no chocolate. Another study found that 1,169 people who ate 50 grams of chocolate once a week were 46% less likely to die following a stroke than people who didn’t eat chocolate.

Going back a little farther, Jean Calment lived to the age of 122, healthy to the end in 1997. She attributed herlongevity to olive oil, two cigarettes a day and a kilo (2.2 pounds!) of chocolate per week. Admittedly, this is liking asking someone why they have a full head of hair. Ms. Calmert was blessed with longevity, and at the veryleast we can say that 2 kilos of chocolate a week didn’t likely shorten her life.

Still, there’s enough here to say that dark chocolate covered almonds are one doozy of a magnesium boost. Almonds are high in magnesium as well.

The only question here is this: Can we make up for our magnesium deficiency by indulging in daily chocolate binges?

Well….maybe that’s not such a good idea.

Here’s the bad news (you knew there had to be a catch, right?)

Chocolate is still a junk food. While the magnesium in chocolate will be a benefit, as will the anti-oxidants in it, you are getting a lot of other stuff you might be better off without. Sugar, for one. Fatty calories for another. While magnesium works to prevent the onset of adult Type II diabetes and reduce inflammatory diseases, the sugar will be working to screw up your insulin levels and increase inflammatory conditions.

Chocolate also has high copper levels, which can bring on a number of problems over years. Accumulated copper levels actually worsen many of the conditions that magnesium makes better.

This is not meant to scare you, as chocolate is a pleasurable food. Just keep in mind that it’s not a cure-all, and shouldn’t be overindulged in.

So, if you want something sweet and fun, buy all means make sure it’s chocolate with a high cocoa content. Mixed with almonds is even better. While your main source of magnesium shouldn’t be the magnesium in chocolate, there’snothing wrong enjoying the benefits of chocolate at your usual dessert or snack time.

Magnesium deficiency keeing you awake?

Magnesium Deficiency – What are the Signs?

A magnesium deficiency is very hard to detect without a visit to the doctor for an actual test of your blood levels. However, there are some factors in your life that may suggest deficiency in magnesium that are worth looking at first. These factors fall into two categories:

1- Symptoms of magnesium deficiency
2- Things you are doing or drinking that leach magnesium from your body

Let’s look at the symptoms first, varied as they are:

Insomnia-
Tiredness and insomnia (funny how there go hand in hand) are the earliest signs of a deficiency. You are restless at night, and may wake up frequently. During the day, you’re just tired. Any reason for this? It could be stress, yet stress itself is know to use up the body’s magnesium.

Nausea and vomiting, with loss of appetite-
Another early sign.

Later stage signs of numbness, muscle twitching, irregular heartbeat and coronary spasms-
These are scarier. Nothing like laying awake at night with insomnia, and feeling your heart struggle. It certainly was enough for me to start looking at sources of magnesium in food.

Headaches-

These are frequently reported, and I have personally heard from people who have stopped chronic headaches that they have suffered for as long as 2 years by simply upping their consumption of foods high in magnesium. Others have supplemented the foods with magnesium “oil,” a topical application.

There are numerous other signs that cover just about everything you can imagine, including depression (insufficient magnesium lowers the body’s production of the neurochemical serotonin), mood swings, jumpiness and more.

Remember, even before you consult with a doctor, there is no harm in increasing your natural intake of magnesium. It is only with supplements that you need to be careful of dosage.

Now…take the symptoms above and consider what you are doing to your body that might be draining you of magnesium.

Stress, both mental and physical, excess coffee, sugar, salt, alcohol and sweetened sodas all have an effect. So does tobacco and excess sweating. Various medications are also know to deplete the magnesium in your body.

Moreover, there’s the big issue of excess calcium. Yes, it’s possible to take in too much calcium, which ironically has the effect of making your bones weaker. Excess calcium depletes your magnesium. Osteoporosis and fragile bones can actually be caused by calcium rather than prevented.

On the other hand, too much magnesium is simply not possible when you source it naturally from food.

If you can identify with some of the signs above, it’s a very good idea to start increasing your magnesium intake immediately. Follow the links above to see what foods you need, and get ahead of any magnesium deficiency that may be dragging you down in every area of your life and health.

ADHD and magnesium

There are suggestions that children suffering from attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) may be in fact displaying the results of a mild magnesium deficiency. The deficiency may cause irritability, decreased attention spans, and mental confusion. The clinical study below observed 116 children with ADHD, and found a striking 95% to be magnesium deficient. In a separate clinical study, 75 magnesium-deficient children with ADHD were chosen at random to receive either magnesium supplements in addition to standard treatment or just standard treatment without the supplements for a period of 6 months. Those who received the magnesium supplements displayed significant improvements in behavior, while those who received only the usual therapy, without magnesium supplements, were observed to display deteriorating behavior.

These results suggest that magnesium supplementation, or at least high amounts of magnesium in the diet and magnesium rich foods, may prove to be beneficial for children with ADHD.

Source-

Starobrat-Hermelin B, Kozielec T. The effects of magnesium physiological supplementation on hyperactivity in children with attention deficit hyperactive disorder (ADHD): positive response to magnesium oral loading test. Magnesium Research. 1997; 10(2):149-156.

Mary joked that she felt as though she was constantly being run over by a slow-moving bus. Cramping in her legs startled her awake at night, making her an insomniac, and she had heart palpitations daily. Her doctor also found that she had high blood sugar — not bad enough to need injections of insulin, but he prescribed pills to try to stimulate more insulin production. Finally, frightening panic attacks came out of nowhere and made this vibrant, fun-loving woman afraid to go outside.

To try to relieve her leg cramps, Mary began taking calcium at night, having read that it was good for cramps and sleep. At first, the calcium seemed to help, but after a week or two, the pains got worse. If she yawned and stretched in bed, her calf muscles would seize up and catapult her to the floor, where she would lie frantically massaging her muscles to try to release the spasm. All the next day, she would limp about with a very tender, bruised feeling in her calf.

Although Mary’s heart palpitations had improved somewhat after she’d given up her three cups of coffee a day, they too resumed after a few weeks. Every time the palpitations occurred, which was several times a day, they made her cough slightly and catch her breath. She found it frightening, even though her doctor said her stress tests for heart disease were fine and she didn’t need further testing with an angiogram.

Both Mary’s parents had adult-onset diabetes, and Mary knew that she should watch her diet, but she was overweight and craved sugary and high-carbohydrate foods that were hard to resist. When the panic attacks hit on top of everything else, Mary knew she had to seek help, and came to my office. She was only fifty-three, far too young to be feeling so bad, and was worried about her future health.

Sam was only forty-nine and experiencing chest pains. At first, he thought they were indigestion, but sometimes the pains would occur in the middle of the night. Concerned, he went to a cardiologist, who found two slightly blocked arteries, not serious enough for bypass surgery. Sam’s cholesterol was somewhat elevated, as was his blood pressure, which he attributed to his high-stress occupation and the fact that he had not exercised regularly for the past six months, when he was sidelined with back pain. The cardiologist observed that his arterial blockage would almost inevitably worsen over time and eventually necessitate surgery. The doctor offered him medication for his high cholesterol, told him not to eat butter or eggs, and gave him nitroglycerine to take whenever he had the pain. If the symptoms got worse, he would prescribe other medications. Sam couldn’t imagine having to wait to get worse before doing something about his chest pain; he knew there must be something more he could do to avoid surgery and came to me for advice.

At thirty-five, Jan had actually begun to look forward to going through menopause. That’s how bad her PMS symptoms were. As soon as those horrible feelings lifted, she was hit by the sledgehammer of menstrual cramps. She also had migraines, which for years had come before her period but now were occurring once or twice a week. She was so miserable that she was considering a complete hysterectomy, with removal of her hormone-producing ovaries, but wondered whether the migraines, since they were happening all month, were not hormonal.

Different as their symptoms are, Mary, Sam, and Jan all suffer from magnesium deficiency. While women and men seem equally susceptible to magnesium deficiency, women may become deficient faster than men due to hormonal fluctuations because pound for pound, they have fewer circulating red blood cells, which carry magnesium, and so perhaps less magnesium available. There are a few other gender differences. Because of magnesium’s effect on hormonal regulation and vice versa, women can have deficiencies in pregnancy, when breast-feeding, with premenstrual syndrome (PMS), and with dysmenorrhea (painful periods). Osteoporosis, which affects more women than men, is evidence of a deficiency of both calcium and magnesium. An overactive thyroid, which afflicts more women than men, increases the metabolic rate, which uses up magnesium-requiring ATP (adenosine triphosphate — the energy packets made in each cell in the body). Without magnesium, ATP would not be produced.

Let’s follow Mary, Sam, and Jan and see how they overcame their magnesium deficiencies.

When Mary visited me, I charted her health history in detail, according to procedures commonly used by naturopathic doctors, and found several symptoms of magnesium deficiency. In her case it had been made even worse by too much calcium, so simple magnesium supplementation wouldn’t be enough for Mary. Her diet and lifestyle needed a complete overhaul.

I gave Mary a list of magnesium-rich foods that she needed to start eating, which included nuts, beans, greens, and seeds such as sunflower and pumpkin. Mary realized that she’d been avoiding almost all of these foods: She thought nuts were fattening, beans gave her gas, and greens never seemed fresh enough at the supermarket. She had never even thought about eating seeds.

After a week of enthusiastically eating a lot more magnesium-rich foods, Mary felt somewhat better. To make sure she could get fresh organic greens regularly, she tracked down a local community-supported agriculture (CSA) program and bought a share in a neighboring organic farm. Mary also learned how to soak and cook beans to prevent them from causing gas, and began eating nuts and seeds rich in magnesium and healthy oils, such as almonds, walnuts, pecans, sunflower seeds, and pumpkin seeds.

After her second visit I recommended that she begin taking magnesium supplements. Starting with a dosage of 200 mg a day, we added another 200 mg every two days to build slowly to 600 mg. I cautioned her that it could take months to eliminate magnesium deficiency symptoms and that not all her symptoms would necessarily respond. Within two months, however, Mary was singing the praises of magnesium. Her palpitations and panic attacks had disappeared. Her cravings for sweets were fewer, she was able to control her blood sugar with diet alone, and tests for blood sugar were normal. Her leg cramps were gone, and with them her insomnia. At three months we added calcium along with magnesium so that she would not develop an imbalance of the two. Mary’s internist was quite surprised at her improved health and told her to keep up the good work with her diet and supplements.

Sam had an inquiring mind, and I encouraged him to start reading about heart disease. He found that up to 30 percent of angina (chest pain) patients do not have badly blocked arteries but may be suffering from an electrical imbalance that is driven by mineral deficiency, most commonly magnesium. An astonishing 40 to 60 percent of sudden deaths from heart attack may occur in the complete absence of any prior artery blockage, clot formation or heart rhythm abnormalities, most likely from spasms in the arteries (magnesium is a natural antispasmodic). Moreover, he found that magnesium deficiency has been linked to sudden cardiac death. Sam didn’t want to wait around for that to happen to him; he was determined to find out what was causing his problem and treat the cause. The more he read, the more intrigued he became. When he read that magnesium deficiency is also associated with muscle pain, especially back pain, that really got his attention, since he had begun having back pain four or five months before he began to develop chest pains.

With a packet of information on magnesium, Sam went back to his cardiologist. Before the doctor saw him, however, a nurse took Sam’s blood pressure; it was unusually elevated, even though at home it was usually only a few points above normal. (Doctor-induced hypertension is commonly reported by patients.) The cardiologist swept into the room and immediately began talking about blood pressure medication. Sam countered with magnesium. The cardiologist visibly cooled and said that magnesium was used to control hypertension that occurred in pregnant women because there were no side effects, but that there were plenty of effective drugs for everyone else. When Sam said he would rather not have side effects either, the cardiologist gathered up his file and told him to come back when he was ready to take medications for his heart disease.

When Sam came back to see me, he was still pretty upset by this encounter; he didn’t like the specialist refusing to discuss a possible magnesium deficiency as part of the picture. Sam and I agreed that magnesium seemed the best treatment for him to initiate at this time since he was not willing to take medications.

Sam began adding magnesium to his diet by eating magnesium-rich foods. After a week he felt much calmer, but he still had chest and back pain. So he added magnesium and calcium supplements, and in about three months he felt almost normal.

Among the studies Sam read was one that looked at the correspondence between type A personalities and magnesium deficiency. From the description, Sam realized he was a type A, an aggressive guy who lived on adrenaline, time pressure, and stress. This type of behavior drains the body of magnesium and can lead to disorders such as heart disease, muscle spasms, hypersensitivity, and irritability. Prolonged psychological stress raises adrenaline, the stress hormone, which depletes magnesium. Both Sam’s back and chest pain would hit when he was under stress. So Sam worked on ways to control his stress and added more magnesium when he knew he couldn’t avoid it. On days when he exercised, Sam added an extra 200 mg of magnesium to his diet, since sweat loss during heavy exercise (cycling and jogging) and working in the heat deplete magnesium. Just drinking water won’t replace all the minerals lost. By paying attention to the many factors that affected his mind-body health, Sam lowered his cholesterol and stress levels and reduced his chance of a heart attack and of needing surgery to unblock his arteries.

Jan heard that yoga might help her PMS and painful periods, and she really needed to learn to relax, so she took classes at a local health club. The teacher also ran regular detox and cooking classes, which Jan decided to join when she realized she didn’t have to “give up everything” and become a vegetarian. One of the first things Jan learned in the detox class was the importance of having regular bowel movements. Jan was lucky if she had one a week. If the bowel doesn’t empty once a day, toxins can be reabsorbed back into the body from the colon. The longer debris sits in the colon, the more fluid is reabsorbed, making stools solid and difficult to pass. PMS and endometriosis, which causes painful periods, are considered by some natural health experts to worsen with constipation and toxicity.

During cooking classes, Jan faced the fact that she was a junk food addict. Magnesium is necessary in hundreds of enzymes in the body but is almost totally lost during the processing of packaged and fast foods. The older women in their class were suffering from a variety of problems that included cancer, heart disease, and osteoporosis. Is that how she would end up in ten or twenty years if she didn’t take care of her health now? Learning how many basic nutrients she lacked in her diet made her marvel that she wasn’t even more ill. Her new diet included greens, beans, nuts, and seeds, which cleared up her constipation and almost eliminated her PMS and painful periods. When she came to see me on the advice of her yoga teacher, it was clear she was on the right track. I recommended that she begin taking a magnesium supplement along with calcium and a multiple vitamin; with all her lifestyle changes, she felt like a new person.

The Body is Electric
The impulses for any and all movement in the body arise from electrical transmission. These microcurrents of electricity that pass along the nerves were first measured in 1966. Scientists soon discovered that the conductor for these bodily electrical currents was calcium and that magnesium was necessary to maintain the proper level of calcium in the blood. More recent research indicates that calcium enters the cells by way of calcium channels that are jealously guarded by magnesium. Magnesium allows a certain amount of calcium to enter a cell to create the necessary electrical transmission, and then immediately helps to eject the calcium once the work is done. Why? If calcium accumulates in the cell, it causes toxicity and disrupts cell function. Too much calcium entering cells can cause symptoms of heart disease (such as angina, high blood pressure, and arrhythmia), asthma, or headaches. Magnesium is nature’s calcium channel blocker.

About 60-65 percent of all our magnesium is housed in our bones and teeth. The remaining 35-40 percent is found in the rest of the body, including muscle and tissue cells and body fluids. The highest concentrations are in the heart and brain cells, so it is no wonder that the major symptoms of magnesium deficiency affect the heart and brain. These are also the two organs that have considerable electrical activity measured by EKG (electrocardiogram) and EEG (electroencephalogram). Our blood contains only one percent of the body’s total magnesium.

Magnesium mostly works inside our tissue cells, producing ATP energy packets for our body’s vital force and triggering production of all the body’s protein structures by revving up messenger RNA. It is also a requirement for the production of DNA, our genetic code. Both of the basic building blocks of life, RNA and DNA, are dependent on magnesium to maintain stable genes. In addition to its stabilizing effect on DNA and the structure of chromosomes, magnesium is an essential cofactor in almost all enzyme systems involved in the processing of DNA. Research shows that without sufficient magnesium, DNA synthesis becomes sluggish.

What Does Magnesium Do?
Magnesium’s hundreds of activities in the human body can be divided into five essential categories:

1. Magnesium is a cofactor assisting enzymes in catalyzing most chemical reactions in the body, including temperature regulation.

2. Magnesium produces and transports energy.

3. Magnesium is necessary for the synthesis of protein.

4. Magnesium helps to transmit nerve signals.

5. Magnesium helps to relax muscles.

1. Cofactor in Chemical Reactions – Enzymes are protein molecules that stimulate every chemical reaction in the body. Magnesium is required to make hundreds of these enzymes work.

2. Producing and Transporting Energy – Magnesium and the B-complex vitamins are excellent examples of energy nutrients, because they activate enzymes that control digestion, absorption, and the utilization of proteins, fats, and carbohydrates. Because magnesium is involved with hundreds of enzymatic reactions throughout the body, deficiency can affect every aspect of life and cause a score of symptoms. Of the 325 magnesium-dependent enzymes, the most important enzyme reaction involves the creation of energy by activating adenosine triphosphate (ATP), the fundamental energy storage molecule of the body. ATP may be what the Chinese refer to as qi or life force. Magnesium is required for the body to produce and store energy. Without magnesium there is no energy, no movement, no life. IT is that simple.

3. Synthesizing Protein – Magnesium is used in synergy with dozens of other vitamins and minerals to create structural components of the body. Under the direction of magnesium, enzymes and nutrients modify the building blocks from food to create the body. Without magnesium, there is no body. RNA and DNA, which contain the genetic blueprints for the formation of all the protein molecules in the body, are also dependent on magnesium.

4. Transmitting Nerve Signals – Magnesium permits calcium to enter a nerve cell to allow electrical transmission along the nerves to and from the brain. Even our thoughts, via brain neurons, are dependent on magnesium.

5. Relaxing Muscles – Calcium causes contraction in skeletal muscle fibers, and magnesium causes relaxation. When there is too much calcium and insufficient magnesium, you can get sustained muscle contraction: twitches, spasms, and even convulsions. Smooth muscles directed by too much calcium and insufficient magnesium can tighten the bronchial tract, causing asthma; cause cramping in the uterus and painful periods; and cause spasms in blood vessels, resulting in hypertension.

The Dance of Calcium and Magnesium
Calcium and magnesium share equal importance in our bodies. Newton’s law says that for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction, and calcium and magnesium dance within this law. Neither can act without eliciting a reaction from the other. At the biochemical level, magnesium and calcium are known to act antagonistically towards each other. Many enzymes whose activities critically depend on a sufficient amount of intracellular magnesium will be detrimentally affected by small increases in levels of cellular calcium. Growth of cells, cell division, and intermediary metabolism are also absolutely dependent on the availability of magnesium, which can be compromised if excess calcium is present.

To understand how you can create a calcium/magnesium imbalance in your own body, try this experiment in your kitchen. Crush a calcium pill and see how much dissolves in 1 oz of water. Then crush a magnesium pill and slowly stir it into the calcium water. When you introduce the magnesium, the remaining calcium dissolves; it becomes more water-soluble. The same thing happens in your bloodstream, heart, brain, kidneys, and all the tissues in your body. If you don’t have enough magnesium to help keep calcium dissolved, you may end up with calcium-excess muscle spasms, fibromyalgia, hardening of the arteries, and even dental cavities. Another scenario plays out in the kidneys. If there is too much calcium in the kidneys and not enough magnesium to dissolve it, you can get kidney stones.

All the muscles, including the heart and blood vessels, contain more magnesium than calcium. If magnesium is deficient, calcium floods the smooth muscle cells of the blood vessels and causes spasms leading to constricted blood vessels and therefore higher blood pressure, arterial spasm, angina, and heart attack. A proper balance of magnesium in relation to calcium can prevent these symptoms. Calcium excess, stimulating the cells in the muscular layer of the temporal arteries over the temples, can cause migraine headaches. Excess calcium can constrict the smooth muscle surrounding the small airways of the lung, causing restricted breathing and asthma. Finally, too much calcium, without the protective effect of magnesium, can irritate delicate nerve cells of the brain. Cells that are irritated by calcium fire electrical impulses repeatedly, depleting their energy stores and causing cell death.

The Calcium Distraction
The irony of the calcium-magnesium story is that without magnesium calcium will not work properly. Both our current diet and tendency to oversupplement with calcium, however, make getting enough magnesium almost impossible. Research shows that the ratio of calcium to magnesium in the paleolithic or caveman diet — the ancient diet that had evolved with our bodies — was 1:1, compared with a 5:1 to 15:1 ratio in present-day diets. With an average of ten times more calcium than magnesium in our current diet, there is no doubt about widespread magnesium deficiency in modern times.

(The Miracle of Magnesium is available at Amazon.com in an updated version entitled Magnesium Miracle)