HEALTH REPORT
Mighty magnesium S tudies suggest that, besides enhancing over 300 enzyme-related processes in the body, magnesium may help prevent and combat several diseases. But are you getting enough?
Magnesium is vital to many bodily functions, including energy production, nerve function, muscle relaxation, and bone and tooth formation. In conjunction with calcium and potassium, magnesium regulates heart rhythm and lowers blood pressure, with research indicating that it helps to prevent and treat heart disease. It also plays a part in the production and use of insulin, with one study from Johns Hopkins University suggesting that an adequate magnesium intake may prevent non-insulin-dependent (type 2) diabetes. Even though your body only needs a small amount of magnesium – around 28 grams – many people still do not have adequate stores of it, often because they eat too many processed foods, which contain very little of this mineral. Magnesium levels are also easily depleted by stress, by certain medications, and by intense exercise. Here’s how to tell if you might be deficient in this important mineral. Sugar cravings: A burning desire for something sweet is a signal that the body is lacking magnesium, which is a necessary cofactor in the metabolism of carbohydrates. Muscle cramps: The ability of muscles to contract and relax is dependent on magnesium. Insufficient magnesium in the
body can cause muscle spasms and cramps. Insomnia: Magnesium helps the body to relax naturally, while lowering cortisol and reducing anxiety, which all compromise sleep. Restless legs: A lack of magnesium makes nerve cells overactive; this means they send too many signals to the muscles, making them constantly contract. Migrainesandheadaches: Magnesium soothes muscle tension in the head and neck; it also inhibits platelet aggregation, which helps to prevent the thickened blood and tiny clots that can trigger the blood vessel spasms behind a migraine or headache. Fatigue: Magnesium is involved in energy production; without enough of it, you may experience tiredness, low energy, and reduced mobility. Acid reflux: Magnesiumhelps relieveand control spasms occurring in the oesophagus which cause acid reflux, or heartburn. Taking a magnesium supplement will help to restore magnesium stores in the body to optimal levels. Magnesium tablets and powder supplements have traditionally been regarded as the best way to boost the body’s magnesium levels. However, recent studies show that a topical oil form of magnesium, when sprayed on the skin,
can boost cellular magnesium saturation by up to 80 per cent. These modern magnesium sprays are an effective method to not only improve magnesium levels in the body, but to actively counter symptoms of magnesium deficiency. The secret is that topical application bypasses the liver and gut, meaning that high levels of magnesium are delivered directly to the cellular level. Are you at risk? The modern Western diet, with its refined grains, processed foods and sugar, contains very little magnesium. Making matters worse is the fact that the magnesium content of whole grains and fresh vegetables is also declining, due to the depletion of minerals in soil used for farming.
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ISSUE 53 • 2019
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