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he Importance of Magnesium to Human Nutrition
Michael Schachter M.D., F.A.C.A.M.
Magnesium is an extremely important and valuable mineral, whose value for good health is just being recognized by conventional physicians.
Virtually, all chemical reactions in the body require an enzyme system to help the biochemical reaction take place. An enzyme system generally consists of three parts. They are a specific protein molecule, another smaller organic compound, which is often a vitamin, such as pyridoxine or vitamin B6, and finally a charged mineral, such as zinc, copper, manganese or magnesium. Magnesium is a critical co-factor in more than 300 enzymatic reactions in the human body. Each mineral when dissolved in fluids has a characteristic electrical charge, called its valance. Minerals with a charge of plus 1, or univalent cations, include sodium and potassium. Minerals with a charge of plus 2, or divalent cations, include copper, zinc, manganese and magnesium. Potassium and magnesium are the most abundant cations found within the cells of the body with magnesium being the most abundant divalent cation.
In the USA, magnesium supplementation is dramatically under utilized by conventional physicians and is more important in patient therapy than most physicians realize. There are over 200 published clinical studies documenting the need for magnesium. In fact, at the 1992 American College of Cardiology annual meeting, a limited biography on magnesium was the most often requested item at the National Council on Magnesium and Cardiovascular booth.
Up until recently, conventional medicine's interest in magnesium has been only by obstetricians, who have used injectable magnesium sulfate extensively in the treatment of high blood pressure and pre-eclampsia and eclampsia of pregnancy. But, recently conventional physicians have become interested in treating patients with acute heart attacks, chronic cardiovascular disease, heart arrhythmias, diabetes, asthma, chronic fatigue syndrome and many other disorders.
Symptoms of Magnesium Deficiency?
What are some of the symptoms of magnesium deficiency? They are outlined beautifully in a recent article by Dr. Sidney Baker. Magnesium deficiency can affect virtually every organ system of the body. With regard to skeletal muscle, one may experience twitches, cramps, muscle tension, muscle soreness, including back aches, neck pain, tension headaches and jaw joint (or TMJ) dysfunction. Also, one may experience chest tightness or a peculiar sensation that he can't take a deep breath. Sometimes a person may sigh a lot.
Symptoms involving impaired contraction of smooth muscles include constipation; urinary spasms; menstrual cramps; difficulty swallowing or a lump in the throat-especially provoked by eating sugar; photophobia, especially difficulty adjusting to oncoming bright headlights in the absence of eye disease; and loud noise sensitivity from stapedius muscle tension in the ear.
Other symptoms and signs of magnesium deficiency and discuss laboratory testing for this common condition. Continuing with the symptoms of magnesium deficiency, the central nervous system is markedly affected. Symptoms include insomnia, anxiety, hyperactivity and restlessness with constant movement, panic attacks, agoraphobia, and premenstrual irritability. Magnesium deficiency symptoms involving the peripheral nervous system include numbness, tingling, and other abnormal sensations, such as zips, zaps and vibratory sensations.
Symptoms or signs of the cardiovascular system include palpitations, heart arrhythmias, angina due to spasms of the coronary arteries, high blood pressure and mitral valve prolapse. Be aware that not all of the symptoms need to be present to presume magnesium deficiency; but, many of them often occur together. For example, people with mitral valve prolapse frequently have palpitations, anxiety, panic attacks and premenstrual symptoms. People with magnesium deficiency often seem to be "uptight." Other general symptoms include a salt craving, both carbohydrate craving and carbohydrate intolerance, especially of chocolate, and breast tenderness.
Michael Schachter M.D., F.A.C.A.M.
Magnesium is an extremely important and valuable mineral, whose value for good health is just being recognized by conventional physicians.
Virtually, all chemical reactions in the body require an enzyme system to help the biochemical reaction take place. An enzyme system generally consists of three parts. They are a specific protein molecule, another smaller organic compound, which is often a vitamin, such as pyridoxine or vitamin B6, and finally a charged mineral, such as zinc, copper, manganese or magnesium. Magnesium is a critical co-factor in more than 300 enzymatic reactions in the human body. Each mineral when dissolved in fluids has a characteristic electrical charge, called its valance. Minerals with a charge of plus 1, or univalent cations, include sodium and potassium. Minerals with a charge of plus 2, or divalent cations, include copper, zinc, manganese and magnesium. Potassium and magnesium are the most abundant cations found within the cells of the body with magnesium being the most abundant divalent cation.
In the USA, magnesium supplementation is dramatically under utilized by conventional physicians and is more important in patient therapy than most physicians realize. There are over 200 published clinical studies documenting the need for magnesium. In fact, at the 1992 American College of Cardiology annual meeting, a limited biography on magnesium was the most often requested item at the National Council on Magnesium and Cardiovascular booth.
Up until recently, conventional medicine's interest in magnesium has been only by obstetricians, who have used injectable magnesium sulfate extensively in the treatment of high blood pressure and pre-eclampsia and eclampsia of pregnancy. But, recently conventional physicians have become interested in treating patients with acute heart attacks, chronic cardiovascular disease, heart arrhythmias, diabetes, asthma, chronic fatigue syndrome and many other disorders.
Symptoms of Magnesium Deficiency?
What are some of the symptoms of magnesium deficiency? They are outlined beautifully in a recent article by Dr. Sidney Baker. Magnesium deficiency can affect virtually every organ system of the body. With regard to skeletal muscle, one may experience twitches, cramps, muscle tension, muscle soreness, including back aches, neck pain, tension headaches and jaw joint (or TMJ) dysfunction. Also, one may experience chest tightness or a peculiar sensation that he can't take a deep breath. Sometimes a person may sigh a lot.
Symptoms involving impaired contraction of smooth muscles include constipation; urinary spasms; menstrual cramps; difficulty swallowing or a lump in the throat-especially provoked by eating sugar; photophobia, especially difficulty adjusting to oncoming bright headlights in the absence of eye disease; and loud noise sensitivity from stapedius muscle tension in the ear.
Other symptoms and signs of magnesium deficiency and discuss laboratory testing for this common condition. Continuing with the symptoms of magnesium deficiency, the central nervous system is markedly affected. Symptoms include insomnia, anxiety, hyperactivity and restlessness with constant movement, panic attacks, agoraphobia, and premenstrual irritability. Magnesium deficiency symptoms involving the peripheral nervous system include numbness, tingling, and other abnormal sensations, such as zips, zaps and vibratory sensations.
Symptoms or signs of the cardiovascular system include palpitations, heart arrhythmias, angina due to spasms of the coronary arteries, high blood pressure and mitral valve prolapse. Be aware that not all of the symptoms need to be present to presume magnesium deficiency; but, many of them often occur together. For example, people with mitral valve prolapse frequently have palpitations, anxiety, panic attacks and premenstrual symptoms. People with magnesium deficiency often seem to be "uptight." Other general symptoms include a salt craving, both carbohydrate craving and carbohydrate intolerance, especially of chocolate, and breast tenderness.
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My 6mo twin DD's are EBF and just started rice cereal on the first. Everything has been going fine except this morning one of them had a diaper rash (lots of redness around her anus). I read this as one of the signs of an allergy. BUT I did just buy a different brand diaper yesterday (which they have used randomly before w/no issues). Do you think its the cereal or the diaper? Im ready to start...
Aside from the signs and symptoms of magnesium deficiency, how can a physician diagnose magnesium deficiency? Unfortunately, laboratory testing is of limited value. Since magnesium is found primarily in the cells, the serum magnesium may be normal in spite of a significant magnesium deficiency. The red blood cell magnesium is a little bit better. Probably the best test, although certainly not full proof, is the magnesium loading test. In this test, the patient collects a 24-hour urine sample and the total magnesium is measured. The patient is then given an injection of a specified amount of magnesium and another 24-hour urine specimen is collected. The magnesium is again measured. If the body retains more than a certain amount of magnesium, then it is concluded that the body is magnesium deficient and is holding on to the magnesium that has been injected. Perhaps the best method of diagnosing magnesium deficiency, however, is the combination of signs and symptoms of magnesium deficiency, which improve with a therapeutic trial of either oral or injected magnesium.
How can one get magnesium from foods? The best way of insuring enough magnesium is to eat a variety of whole foods, including whole grains, nuts, seeds and vegetables, preferably food grown on naturally composted soil. The green color of green vegetables is due to chlorophyll, which is a molecule that contains magnesium. Avoid refined processed foods, especially white sugar and white flour products, as most magnesium is removed from them.
For people who suffer from chronic magnesium deficiency and also to prevent the development of this condition, oral magnesium supplements can be quite useful. Magnesium is available in many forms. The cheapest is probably magnesium oxide, but this form is not absorbed as well as some other forms, which include chelated magnesium, magnesium glycinate and magnesium aspartate. Dr. Baker feels that the prescription form of magnesium chloride, known as Slow-mag, has been most useful for his patients. I have found that magnesium taurate, an unusual form of magnesium in which magnesium is chemically combined with the amino acid derivative taurine, is particularly well utilized and beneficial. This is because some of the same effects that one hopes to get from magnesium, such as the calming effect on the nervous system, and the strengthening effect on heart muscle, is also gotten with taurine. So, the two are synergistic together. I use it in all forms of cardiac and nervous system disorders.
What about dosage? The recommended daily allowance or RDA for magnesium is 350 milligrams of elemental magnesium. An important point here is that when reading the label of a supplement containing magnesium, it is important to distinguish between the number of milligrams per tablet or capsule of the entire magnesium complex versus the number of milligrams of elemental magnesium or pure magnesium. For example, one label of a chelated magnesium states that 4 tablets contain 4,000 mg of the chelated magnesium complex with 500 mg of elemental magnesium. The important number is the one that refers to the elemental magnesium. The other 3,500 mg in this case refers to the amino acid complex that is bound to the magnesium.
Keeping this definition of elemental magnesium in mind, many people do not even get the RDA of 350 mg of magnesium daily. A therapeutic dosage could easily run between 400 mg and 1000 mg daily of elemental magnesium in divided doses. In people with normal kidneys, it is difficult to reach toxic levels of magnesium. However, too much oral magnesium will result in diarrhea. Recall that milk of magnesia is a laxative containing a magnesium salt. Patients suffering from chronic kidney failure must be much more careful because their kidneys have difficulty eliminating magnesium and a toxic buildup may occur. Toxic levels of magnesium may lead to depression of the entire nervous system and even coma and death. But, this is extraordinarily rare and occurs only in patients with severe kidney function impairment. In general, magnesium doses of 1000 mg per day or less are extremely safe.
Magnesium Supplementation for Various Medical Disorders
Oral magnesium supplementation may be helpful to a wide variety of medical disorders including: high blood pressure, asthma, angina pectoris, coronary artery disease, cardiac arrhythmias, chronic fatigue syndrome, all types of musculoskeletal disorders, epilepsy, mitral valve prolapse, anxiety, panic disorder and many other medical and psychiatric conditions.
For many conditions, such as acute heart attacks, magnesium given by either an intramuscular injection or as an intravenous drip, is the preferred method of treatment. Studies show it reduces the death rate and complications of acute heart attacks. In spite of its low cost or perhaps as a result of its low cost, it is not yet given routinely to heart attack victims. Other patients, such as those suffering from chronic fatigue syndrome also seem to do better with magnesium given by injection. This may be due to the superior absorption of injectable magnesium or because high concentrations in the body are necessary for maximal therapeutic effects. In our office, we use injectable magnesium extensively, as part of our EDTA chelation bottle, and for many of the conditions I've mentioned previously.
Increased use of oral and injectable magnesium, along with a diet rich in magnesium, should greatly improve therapeutic results for many patients.
But thanks to Dansdoll who BRILLIANTLY found this page!
http://www.ctds.info/5_13_magnesium.html#anxiety
Magnesium deficiency causes increased levels of adrenaline, which can lead to a feeling of anxiety. Rats who become magnesium deficient have an increased level of urinary catecholamine excretion (a by-product of adrenaline)."
That's from Dansdoll's find... notice something important? There it is again - CATECHOLAMINES! and (H0ly Cr@p!) while researching to better understand what is up with magnesium and catecholamines, found out that increased levels of serotonin can cause an increase release of norepinephrine (noradrenaline).
FYI - Doll's find has links to www.PubMed.gov which is a service of the National Library of Medicine and the National Institutes of Health. Great resource, Doll! ;)
"[Magnesium] deficiency caused an increase in noradrenaline release because of the increased level of serotonin and the increased uptake of catecholamine at the terminal of the sympathetic nerves."
For those of us trying to understand all the science research we have been doing... looks like the SSRI drugs increasing our serotonin are a problem because the increase of serotonin causes release of norepinephrine. Hmmm... I'll be asking the medical doctor more about how this all works! :)
H0ly cr@p again! Okay... there is a physical disease associated with this magnesium deficiency which has THE EXACT SAME SYMPTOMS OF PTSD ****AND**** it has even been associated with the same "illnesses" that have been used for PTSD in the past. Now, before we go further with this, clearly I got to go talk with the medical doctor BECAUSE we're all prone to panicking when we don't need to, right? ;)
Mag could Definitely have some relevance here.
Ding...Ding...Just remembered Mag deficiency can also be the culprit for muscle twitching and cramping...Gee, why didn't my Pdoc think of that, or my family Doc??
Well, I know my serum Mag level was normal.
My Pdoc DID put me on Mag supplements, but told me it was for my irritability. Along with that she also put me on Omega-3 Fatty Acids for Irritability. She said it was either that, or BuSpar...so I tried the natural route first.
I also believe I read in Dr. Amen's books about Taurine as a important supplement in Neuro-Psych. Dr. Amen is into looking at brain imaging, and determining different treatments based on the areas of the brain affected...and based on the areas of brain affected, your symptoms will coincide with the part of the brain affected.
His motto is:
Change your brain, change your life
http://www.brainplace.com/
Very interesting points...makes a lot of sense as well, and he also tries to base his treatments from a natural approach, and also uses med approach as well. Really makes a lot of sense as well...check it out too Brillante when you get time.
It's definitely worth asking your Pdoc about;)
Good FIND!
(Sorry to annoy the men...) The breast tenderness? OMG! FOREVER! Don't like them touched... Remember how when we first "developed" getting bumped felt like have a rock shoved into damaged skin tissue (or similar painful sensation)? Well, HATE being touched there because that feeling never "quite" went away for me. Painful forever. I just kept working around it because I didn't know better, you know? Same with the low blood pressure and blood sugar and milk allergy, etc.
Now, with the lead you found, Doll, I found entire LISTS of issues I thought were separate all clumped under ONE header. UNEXPECTED!
Anyway, what I liked most about the magnesium deficiency info is that. if there is a deficiency, you can tell because symptoms are alleviated quickly... Let me find that "exact" quote...
Here it is!
"People who are going to respond to magnesium generally do so fairly quickly, within a week or less. If you have heart or kidney problems, check with your doctor before taking supplemental magnesium."
http://www.mothernature.com/Library/Bookshelf/Books/23/114.cfm
They didn't even live that far from us. I couldn't leave the house for a week. I had such panic, that by the end of Aug, I went in the Dr's to get on meds.
Clearly, there are extreme events like those mentioned by FairieGoddess, that will overwhelm the system and DUH! it would anyway. So, keeping propranolol around to block a panic attack is important. However, upping magnesium every day will lead to balanced levels overall.
I just bought my Mag over the counter at Wal-mart, I think it's 250mg on the front, not sure what elemental Mag level it is.
They do have Slow-Mag over the counter, I think.
---PLEASE be cautious though if you have ANY heart trouble OR Kidney trouble when taking Magnesium. Too little or too much Mag can lead to serious problems. It's a big lab that we look at in Cardiac, for when people have irregular heart beats...and we typically give supplentation via IV. Ask your DOC if you have Heart or Kidney Trouble---
ALSO, be sure to tell your Pdoc AND Mdoc of ANY and ALL Supplements you take. It's important to know EVERYTHING you take.
Anyway, this is interesting. I may try it, not megadoses or anything, just to see if it helps. I currently take fish oil and sometimes the relacore for anxiety, with cla (not all the time). That's about it.
Will try for the Slow Mag...I thought it's over the counter, maybe not...I may be thinking of a Slow aomething else, K or Fe...Will check store tomorrow. May have to check the health food store.
Best wishes! and thanks again!!!