Magnesium-A cure for sudden death?
February 28, 2007 at 8:53 pm | In Alternative health, Health, Health and Fitness, Life, Medicine, Opinion, Random, Rants, Thoughts, Vitamins | 5 Comments
Mark J. Eisenberg, MD, as quoted in the February, 2007 issue if the Life Extension magazine states:
Results from the early epidemiological studies suggest that sudden-death rates in soft-water areas are at least 10% greater than sudden-death rates in hard water areas. If magnesium supplementation causes even a modest decrease in sudden-death rates, a substantial number of lives might be saved.
The article then states:
Magnesium blood levels are routinely monitored in hospitalized patients, particularly those who are receiving diuretic medications. It is well known in hospitals that if magnesium levels drop too low, abnormal heart rhythms can suddenly develop…
Paul Mason says that:
[T]he US National Acadamy of Sciences has estimated that a nationwide initiative to add calcium and magnesium to soft water might reduce the annual cardiovascular death rate by 150,000 in the United States.
If that isn’t enough to make you start taking supplemental magnesium, then consider this list of the positive things magnesium does in our bodies:
1. Magnesium improves insulin sensitivity, the defect that characterizes pre-diabetes.
2. Magnesium reduces triglyceride levels.
3. Magnesium suppresses abnormal heart rhythms.
4. Magnesium reduces blood pressure.
5. Magnesium can block migraine headaches.
6. Magnesium can improve exercise performance.
7. Magnesium is believed to exert positive effects on fibromyalgia, asthma, osteoporosis, and premenstrual syndrome.
For a complete list of conditions that may be aided by magnesium, and studies supporting the claim for each condition, go to Paul Mason’s website.
Even in hard water areas, many people use a filtering process for their water to remove chlorine, etc., which also removes magnesium. Water, a normal source of magnesium, provides no magnesium when filtered by distillation or reverse osmosis. Also, the older you are, the more likely it is that you are magnesium deficient. Magnesium levels are also difficult to test, because little magnesium is stored in the blood, so tissue samples are needed to get a good reading. In one study, only 8% of coronary patients showed low blood levels of magnesium, but 53% of them had reduced magnesium levels in tissue samples.
Magnesium levels can be increased by dietary sources such as nuts, pumpkin seeds, oats and oat bran, whole wheat, barley, black or lima beans, and spinach. The US RDA for magnesium is 420 mg for men and 320 mg for women. Magnesium supplements are low in cost. If you don’t take a multiple vitamin with at least 200 to 300 mg of magnesium, you should definitely consider magnesium supplements.
People with kidney failure and myasthenia gravis should not take magnesium supplements.
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It should be clearly stated that all of your assertions are conjectural. There is, in fact, absolutely no evidence that taking magnesium supplements in people who have normal serum magnesium levels (i.e., the vast majority of people with “normal” diets) have any health benefits at all.
Of the so called “benefits” of magnesium that you have listed, that is only true in the case of clear magnesium deficiency.
Furthermore, the vast majority of our magnesium intake comes from our food, not from water.
Like most vitamins and minerals, having adequate amounts is necessary but taking extra supplements almost never results in “extra” benefits. Magnesium has been extensively studied for a variety of conditions and invariable it has been shown to have no effect when compared to placebo.
Furthermore, although it is very safe when the supplements are taken in “sensible” quantities, magnesium is dangerous in excess.
Cheers.
Comment by Michael Tam — March 2, 2007 #
First, if you go to the Paul Mason website linked in the post, you can access more than 300 articles regarding studies of magnesium and magnesium deficiency as it relates to more than 45 various conditions. Readers can decide for themselves whether to believe the studies based on these reports, and whether my post is “conjectural.”
Magnesium is clearly dangerous in excess, as are many beneficial vitamins and minerals. A couple of ways that overdosing occurs: mistakes in medical procedures in giving intravenous magnesium (giving 20 grams (20,000 mg) instead of 2, for example), and taking too much milk of magnesia or some other antacids with magnesium in them.
There are estimates that the average person in the US gets 300 mg per day from food, when the recommended daily allowance for men is 420 mg per day.
And how do you explain the fact that there are 10% fewer sudden deaths (on a per capita basis) in areas with hard water than there are in soft water areas, or the US National Academy of Sciences estimate of saving 150,000 lives by adding calcium and magnesium to water in soft water areas, if we get such an insignificant amount of magnesium in our water?
Comment by pjvs — March 2, 2007 #
Hello friends,I am a happy man,because for the last 6 years something was BAD wrong with me, I spenT up my life savings on dactors and hospital tests.they didn’t find what was wrong with me and still BILLED ME without finding what the problem was.These doctors are worst then Bin Ladin,they are terrorist of the lowest kind.These money hungry devil doctors is keeping us sick and tired if we stay sick they stay rich.SUCKA’S..I was put on hight blood presure medicine and blood thinner and a list of other unnessecary crap.When I felt I was about to die I started reading about potassium and magnesium and other menerals I bought some magesium tablets and multi vitimins I didn’t take the 1 a day multi vitimin I took 6 a day and I too 6 magnesium tablets a day.I allso took 3 potassium tablets and my blood presure have been normal for 19 months.Lets stop looking for the terrorist over in other countries we can find more merceyless terrorist in our hospitals and health care companies.suffer america as long as you make a dollar these terrorist will keep you sick,America we are on our own,protect your family from these terrorist,put the right menerals in your family diets if you don’t you will be under the knife of these so called AMERICAN DOCTOR TERRORISTS,,,True Dat.
Comment by stoney — January 20, 2008 #
Totally agree.I am fit and sporting. I have an Ileostomy and had been suffering from palpitations/arythmia that was getting worse and me more worried, then I discovered on the net about the relationship between heart arythmia and magnesium deficiency. Take mineral/multi-vits now, making sure that I crunch them in half before swallowing because sometimes they go straight through without breaking down, no probs now. I am going to start taking Epsom Salt baths to aid absorption.
Comment by fergus — January 30, 2008 #
Hi! I was surfing and found your blog post… nice! I love your blog.
Cheers! Sandra. R.
Comment by sandrar — September 10, 2009 #