Current scientific studies indicate that as many as 4 in 5 North Americans aren’t achieving the Recommended Dietary Allowance (RDA) for magnesium.
Magnesium is a mineral that is involved in almost every process in your body from muscle relaxation & movement to hormone processing. Magnesium helps to regulate blood sugar, blood pressure and maintain normal heart rhythm and blood flow.
Clinically, Magnesium is used to treat muscle cramps, high blood pressure, constipation, insomnia, headaches/migraines, and chronic stress. Magnesium can also help reduce symptoms of menopause such as insomnia, tissue dryness, mood swings, anxiety, irritability and water-retention. The mineral can also help improve energy levels, which tend to dwindle during menopause.
Because Magnesium is involved in many of our body’s processes, overstimulating these processes will result in an increase in our magnesium requirements. For instance, when we suffer from high stress, our body produces a hormone protein called cortisol.
Producing and regulating this hormone means spending more magnesium.
Magnesium is also fundamental to proper metabolism, and our modern diet high in refined sugar causes more magnesium to be used.
Coffee, alcohol, diuretic drugs and birth control pills can cause our kidneys to eliminate more magnesium than they should.
Some leafy-green vegetables, whole grains, nuts and beans are good magnesium foods, but dietary intake has declined by at least 40% in the last 4 decades due to changes in food harvesting and processing, and overall dietary habits.
Magnesium is a mineral nutrient that’s fundamental to our health, and since the modern diet is low in magnesium, taking a quality well-formulated magnesium supplement is good nutritional health insurance.
Magnesium supplements are best taken on an empty stomach, and not with other supplements/medications.
Magnesium also absorbs well through the skin (potentially better than orally), so Epsom salt baths (magnesium sulphate) can be a great way to increase your body stores.
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