I’m often asked what the most important vitamins and minerals are, and my response is always, “All of them.”
But a certain mineral stands out from the others because it supports great health in a variety of ways, and a deficiency could be downright deadly.
I’m talking about magnesium!
Here’s the scoop on all that magnesium does for you, why you may be low in it (because most people are!) and what you can do about maintaining a healthy level in your body.
Magnesium—the magnificent mineral!
Here is a listing of magnesium’s most essential functions:
Healthy bones, teeth and muscles
Magnesium helps hold calcium in your tooth enamel to keep your teeth strong and supports healthy bone growth in your entire skeleton.
In fact, magnesium deficiency is just as much of an osteoporosis concern as being low in calcium, although most women just hear calcium, calcium, calcium from their doctors.
Additionally, magnesium is also needed for your body to metabolize Vitamin D, which is another nutrient needed for healthy bones!
Magnesium and calcium work together for the health of your muscles too. Calcium causes your muscles to contract, then magnesium makes them relax.
That’s why taking a bath with Epsom salts (which are rich in magnesium) is an effective way to ease sore muscles.
Being without the relaxation effect of magnesium over time can lead to muscle spasms, tremors, cramps, twitching, restless legs and even convulsions!
Cardiovascular health
Magnesium and calcium pair up to carry out one of your body’s most crucial processes—your heartbeat! The lub-dup, lub-dup is calcium and magnesium’s contraction/relaxation efforts in action.
So when you have too little magnesium, it can cause irregular heartbeat.
In addition, calcium levels in your bloodstream are regulated by magnesium, so being low in magnesium can lead to calcium build up in your blood.
When this happens, your body deposits the excess calcium in areas such as your gallbladder, joints, kidneys, and artery walls. This can eventually come out as gallstones, joint degeneration, bone spurs, kidney stones, atherosclerosis and high blood pressure.
Strong immune function
Magnesium deficiency can weaken your immune system and make you much more susceptible to infections, viruses and disease.
Brain and nerve health
Magnesium is critical for proper cell energy production—so lacking in it causes fatigue.
Your body also uses magnesium to produce neurotransmitters like serotonin—so it’s not surprising that magnesium deficiency is common in people with depression.
Magnesium deficiency has also been tied to symptoms such as confusion, delirium, sleep disturbances and schizophrenia.
And there’s even more!
Over 300 different enzymes in your body need magnesium to conduct their actions.
Magnesium is also needed for digestion and regular BMs, building RNA and DNA molecules, and proper insulin production (an important note for Type 2 diabetics).
Magnesium deficiency is also linked to menstrual problems such as low back pain and cramps and migraine headaches.
We’re running low
Current research shows that upwards of 70 to 90 percent of US adults are magnesium deficient!
What makes this even trickier is that deficiency is often difficult for a doctor to diagnose. The initial signs of magnesium deficiency--loss of appetite, nausea and fatigue -- are also common symptoms of a myriad of other health conditions, making it challenging to pinpoint.
Plus blood tests are of limited benefit since most of your body’s magnesium is in your muscles.
Magnesium Deficiency Checklist
Here are the signs of magnesium deficiency—see how many apply to you:
- Behavioral disturbances
- Irritability and anxiety
- Lethargy; fatigue
- Impaired memory and cognitive function
- Anorexia or loss of appetite
- Nausea and vomiting
- Seizures
- Muscle weakness, spasms, cramps
- Tics, twitches, tremors
- Impaired muscle coordination (ataxia)
- Involuntary eye movements and vertigo
- Difficulty swallowing
- Elevated blood sugar
- Irregular heartbeat
- Depression
- ADHD
- Fibromyalgia
- Epilepsy
- Parkinson’s disease
- Sleep problems; insomnia
- Migraine
- Osteoporosis
- PMS
- Atherosclerosis
- Blood clots
- Hypertension
- Type 2 diabetes
- Constipation
- Asthma
Why could YOU be running low?
The most common causes of magnesium deficiency include:
- Insufficient dietary sources of magnesium
- Drinking beverages that interfere with magnesium absorption—soda, caffeinated beverages and alcohol
- Using drugs that impair magnesium absorption—especially diuretics, antibiotics, birth control pills and acid reducers/PPIs
- Poor blood sugar control
- Harmful bacterial overgrowth in the gut microbiome (dysbiosis) and intestinal permeability (leaky gut) that lead to poor nutrient absorption
- Stress
- Reduced levels of magnesium in our crops due to bioengineering, herbicide and pesticide use
Keep your levels healthy!
The good news is that you can help keep your magnesium levels healthy and see some dramatic changes in how you feel as a result!
In addition to avoiding the medications that cause deficiency I mentioned above as much as possible (ask your doctor about alternatives) and reducing stress in your life, here are 4 ways to make sure your body is getting and keeping the magnesium it needs:
Eat your magnesium
Dietary sources of magnesium include:
- Milk and other dairy products
- Meats
- Seafood
- Nuts
- Blackstrap molasses
- Leafy greens
- Spinach
- Broccoli
- Sesame, pumpkin and sunflower seeds
Avoid the magnesium sappers
Avoid the foods and beverages that impair magnesium absorption including refined carbs, processed foods, fast food, soda, caffeinated drinks and overconsumption of alcohol.
Take a multi-vitamin with magnesium
Getting your nutrients from food sources should always be one of your priorities, but if you want to make sure all of your nutrient bases are covered, (or if you “slip up” with your diet now and then) a complete multi-vitamin and mineral formula like Super Core can help fill in the blanks where you may be running low.
Super Core provides a well-rounded, health-supporting blend of essential vitamins and minerals (including magnesium!), as well as natural sources of antioxidants and anti-inflammatories.
Supplement with a potent full-spectrum probiotic
In order to have proper digestion and absorption of nutrients (from both your food and supplements) it’s vital to have a healthy gut microbiome.
In addition to having a diet of nutritious whole foods, supplementation with a potent full-spectrum probiotic formula like Super Shield PLUS can help ensure your friendly gut flora population stays in a health-supporting balance.
Contrary to what most people think, your helpful intestinal bacteria are not “permanent residents”—they only “reside” in you for about 12 days!
So it’s crucial to ensure their numbers stay high, and nothing beats Super Shield PLUS’s effective blendof 15 well-studied bacterial strains and 20 billion CFUs!
Now you are on the road to a healthy magnesium level, as well as other essential nutrients too!
And your body will thank you handsomely!
To your health,
Sherry Brescia
