Magnesium: Part Two

One of my favorite things to do now is to teach health seminars.  Public speaking!  Who knew?  I always begin with explaining to people that our soils have been depleted of vital nutrients since the time of WWII.  What this means to us, for example, is that it now takes roughly 4 apples to get the nutrition my Grandparents got from 1.  If the soil doesn't have the nutrients then the food won't have it either.  One of the hardest hit nutrients is magnesium.  As you saw in my post, Magnesium: Part One, magnesium deficiency has been linked to a wide range of diseases and health issues.  Here I am going to give you some basic facts about magnesium, which I learned from the book, as well as some more helpful links.  Again, if you're interested, get the book :)  What I really love about this book is that the author is an MD as well as an ND (Naturopathic Doctor) so she has a great perspective.

80-85% of us are magnesium deficient.  A blood test is a poor measurement of magnesium levels in the body as only 1% of our magnesium is in our blood.  If you don't have enough magnesium to help keep calcium dissolved in your body, you may end up with calcium-excess issues such as; muscle spasms, fibromyalgia, hardening of arteries, calcium deposits and/or dental cavities.  Many drugs CAUSE magnesium deficiency, including birth control pills and antacids.  Stomach acid is essential for magnesium absorption.  Antacids make it impossible to absorb minerals or digest our food properly (WAY more on this in the book)  Our typical American diet of processed foods is not only deficient in magnesium, but it actually increases the need for magnesium in the body.  Carbonated drinks and processed foods contain phosphates, which bind with magnesium to make it insoluble.

Changed my life in 5 days

    

      Foods rich in magnesium include; green veggies, nuts, seeds, whole grains (rice bran, wheat bran, wheat germ) and raw chocolate.  In order to get enough magnesium you have to take supplements, you just can't get enough from our foods anymore. Reminder: magnesium is a poorly absorbed mineral, especially in tablet form (imagine swallowing a rock and how hard it would be to get nutrients from it).  Powdered Complete Greens  and Isotonix Calcium Complete are two more great sources of magnesium (additional sources in Part 1). The powdered greens are a great source of many other nutrients as well and 1 tsp equals the nutrition in eight salads.  Are you eating eight salads EVERY day?  The two most noticeable things people get from taking this, including me, are energy and mood balancing! A-MEN!!!  Imagine going from being totally overwhelmed with a two year old to being energetic and happy in 5 days.  On day 5 I actually shed a few tears because I couldn't believe how good I felt.   The second recommendation is an excellent choice because (This one's for the science geeks like me) since magnesium (and calcium too) is ionic, it has the tendency to stick to other charged particles, hindering its absorption. When magnesium is dissolved into an aqueous solution, such as an Isotonix Formula, the absorption of magnesium is improved. Furthermore, citric and malic acid are present to ionize the calcium and magnesium once the powder is mixed with water.  So the job of the stomach is already performed with this formula.  The acidity helps to maintain calcium and magnesium in an ionized state.  If you glazed-over you can come back now, snap out of it!

     

     Okay, so I've told you why a deficiency is bad and I've given you multiple options for getting more magnesium into your body, but who cares, what's so important about magnesium anyway?  Magnesium is needed for more than 300 biochemical reactions in the body. It helps maintain normal muscle and nerve function, keeps heart rhythm steady, supports a healthy immune system, and keeps bones strong. Magnesium also helps regulate blood sugar levels(very important for weight loss and diabetes), promotes normal blood pressure, and is involved in energy metabolism and protein synthesis.  Magnesium protects the brain from heavy metals and chemicals. 

Lastly, I want to direct you to Dr Carolyn Dean's