Why You Need Magnesium
Magnesium is often called ‘the Master Mineral’. It is required for 80% of the body’s chemical processes. It impacts every system in the body.
Muscles, nerves, bones, circulation, digestion, the brain and heart all rely on magnesium. Magnesium relaxes muscles and helps them rebound after exercise and injury.
Magnesium helps with healthy functioning and restoration of the nervous system. It keeps calcium in check leading to healthy bones and teeth. Magnesium relaxes the bowel muscles for healthy elimination. It relaxes the muscles of the circulatory system keeping the heart healthy and lowering blood pressure. It helps with high cholesterol, glucose control and many other issues that Americans now suffer from.
Magnesium belongs in every healthy body. Magnesium enables the body to heal itself of many conditions. Magnesium is lost through stress of all kinds. Mental, emotional , physical , environmental, chemical, and spiritual stress all take a toll on our magnesium levels. Magnesium chloride gel or spray applied to the skin is the fastest and safest way to restore your magnesium levels. It puts back what the stress has taken away, leaving you feeling younger, more energetic and more relaxed.
“Feel Good Again”
Magnesium to the Rescue!
Magnesium is the natural cure for depression, muscle cramps, pain, nervous disorders, insomnia and stress related illness according to Dr. Carolyn Dean. Magnesium levels can often define how the human body responds to stress.
Dr. Mildred Seelig described how stress triggers release of hormones from the adrenal glands that liberate stored fats and sugars into the blood circulation. Higher-than-normal circulating levels of cholesterol and blood sugar are characteristic of chronically-stressed modern humans.
Dr. Seelig noted that high intake of fat and calcium (western diets are rich in dairy calcium) intensifies magnesium deficiency, especially under stress. A high calcium/low magnesium state increases the release of stress hormones from the adrenal glands, which further depletes magnesium from the heart muscle and favors the development of blood clots which cause sudden mortal heart attacks. Americans typically consume 3-to-5 times more calcium (800–1200 milligrams) than magnesium.
Magnesium supplementation will reduce the occurrence of irregular heartbeat, heart pain, nervousness, sleep disorders and irritability.
The Rejuvenation Mineral!
It has been shown that the fastest and safest way to restore magnesium to the body is through the skin. The best form to use is magnesium chloride oil or gel which raises levels faster than traditional Epsom salts. It is less expensive and more convenient, as well.
Magnesium chloride has many other important functions in keeping us young and healthy. It has antimicrobial and immune-stimulating properties, and it helps with digestion. It is required to produce a large quantity of gastric acid each day and to stimulate starch-digesting enzymes.
The best way to restore magnesium levels is to apply a thin layer of gel or oil to the skin twice daily and gently rub it in. It takes approximately 4 minutes to reach the muscle and bloodstream. It is a natural pain reliever and muscle relaxer. Extra gel or oil can be used on problem areas such as arthritic joints, tight neck and shoulder muscles and legs. Use extra on your feet for rapid absorption. Studies have shown that it takes an average of 4 months to restore your tissue levels.
Each person’s starting point and lifestyle will determine how long it will take to achieve restoration. Dr. Dean points out that the best barometer for gauging your magnesium level is the trapezius muscle (between your neck and shoulder). When this muscle begins to relax consistently, your level of magnesium is optimum. With continued use, you will experience a steady improvement in sleep, ability to relax, increased energy, improved moods, lessening of anxiety and much more. As she recommends, it is wise to inform your doctor or specialist about using magnesium as this will improve many conditions in the body. (see “The Magnesium Miracle” by Carolyn Dean)
Symptoms of Deficiency
Some early signs of magnesium deficiency are loss of appetite, nausea, vomiting, fatigue, and weakness. Increased deficiency may show as numbness, tingling, muscle contractions and cramps, seizures, personality changes, abnormal heart rhythms and coronary spasms. Severe deficiency results in low levels of calcium in the blood and is also associated with low levels of potassium in the blood.
Magnesium Deficiency Symptoms and Increased Requirements
- Circulation: angina, diabetes, hypertension, high cholesterol, heart infarcts, strokes, tachycardia (fast pulse) and thrombosis, arteriosclerosis/atherosclerosis
- Digestive System: colic, constipation, chronic diarrhea, malabsorption, pancreatitis.
- Muscles: backache, convulsions, cramps, increased excitability/jumpiness, numbness, nystagmus (rapid eye movements), spasms, tense/tight muscles, tingling and tremors.
- Nervous System: apathy, confusion, depression, disorientation, epilepsy, hallucinations, irritability, mental illness, multiple sclerosis, nervousness, neuritis, paranoia, Parkinson’s disease, poor memory and senility.
Other General Signs of Deficiency
migraines, prostate problems, rickets, muscle pain and stiffness, anxiety, wrinkled and tough skin, alcoholism, arthritis, body odor, broken bones, calcification in any organ, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, diabetes, eclampsia, headaches, infections and inflammations, liver cirrhosis, lupus erythematosus, stone-formation in gall bladder or kidneys and overactive thyroid.
Did You Know…
- Prescription meds only treat the symptoms. Magnesium successfully treats the symptoms while it addresses the cause of much of the pain and disease we experience.
- Natural pain relief with transdermal magnesium therapy is safe and effective.
- Magnesium chloride, when applied directly to the skin is quickly absorbed and has an almost immediate effect on chronic pain.
- Transdermally applied magnesium easily belongs in the middle of every pain program and can be used in conjunction with all other pain medications.
- Magnesium is the mineral of rejuvenation and prevents the calcification of our organs and tissues that is characteristic of the old-age related degeneration of our body.
- Magnesium applied to the skin and added to drinking water along with deep tissue massage can help reduce calcification in muscles and joints.
- Magnesium chloride’s effects will be felt almost immediately and continued improvement will occur with daily use.
How to get Magnesium:
- Magnesium Chloride is the fastest acting form of magnesium. Epsom salts are a distant 2nd but they are good for detoxing. The fastest and safest way to restore levels is through the skin (transdermally)
- For those of you who want to add an oral supplement, Dr. Dean recommends 500 mg magnesium capsules, one in the morning and one at bedtime (on an empty stomach for best absorption).
- Magnesium oil and gel acts quickly (about 4 minutes) to soothe pain, relax muscles and nerves.
Magnesium Profile
Magnesium is mainly found inside the cells, it activates many enzymes and is necessary for the metabolism of carbohydrates, fats and amino acids. It is essential for the functions of muscles and nerves and for the formation of bones and teeth. Generally it counteracts and regulates the influence of calcium.
Some early signs of magnesium deficiency are loss of appetite, nausea, vomiting, fatigue, and weakness. Increased deficiency may show as numbness, tingling, muscle contractions and cramps, seizures, personality changes, abnormal heart rhythms, and coronary spasms. Severe deficiency results in low levels of calcium in the blood (hypocalcemia), and is also associated with low levels of potassium in the blood (hypokalemia).
Deficiency Symptoms & Increased Requirements:
CIRCULATION: angina, arteriosclerosis/atherosclerosis, diabetes, hypertension, high cholesterol, heart infarcts, strokes, tachycardia (fast pulse), thrombosis.
DIGESTIVE SYSTEM: colic, constipation, chronic diarrhea, malabsorption, pancreatitis (inflammation of the pancreas).
MUSCLES: backache, convulsions, cramps, increased excitability/jumpiness, numbness, nystagmus (rapid eye movements), spasms, tense/tight muscles, tingling, tremors.
NERVOUS SYSTEM: apathy, confusion, depression, disorientation, epilepsy, hallucinations, irritability, mental illness, multiple sclerosis, nervousness, neuritis, paranoia, Parkinson’s disease, poor memory, senility.
GENERAL: alcoholism, arthritis, body odor, broken bones, calcification in any organ, cancer, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, diabetes, eclampsia, headaches, infections and inflammations, liver cirrhosis, lupus erythematosus, migraines, old age, prostate problems, rickets, rigidity-mental and physical, wrinkled and tough skin, stiffness, stone-formation in gall bladder or kidneys, overactive thyroid.
Best Sources:
Fresh grass juice (e.g. wheat grass, barley grass) and powder of cereal grasses, vegetable juices, kelp, seawater, seafood green leaves, molasses, soaked nuts and oily seeds, and sprouted seeds. Magnesium is the central mineral in chlorophyll, which has a similar protein structure as haemoglobin.
Recommended by Dr. Carolyn Dean MD, ND:
Twice weekly soaking in 2-4 lbs of Epsom Salts (Magnesium Sulfate) in a warm bath for 20-30 minutes. We recommend 1 lb of magnesium chloride bath flakes. Oral dose is a 500 mg capsule taken by itself on an empty stomach morning and evening.
Study Links Magnesium Deficiency to Faster Aging
A lack of magnesium accelerates aging in human cells, which may explain the link between any long-term deficiency and a higher risk of aging-related diseases, a recent study proved. Magnesium is essential for hundreds of biochemical reactions in the body. It helps maintain normal muscle and nerve function, keeps heart rhythm steady, and keeps bones strong.
Yet research has shown that, in the United States, 87% of the population is lacking in magnesium due to deficiencies in their diet, potentially increasing their risk of cardiovascular disease, hypertension, diabetes, osteoporosis and some cancers.
To try to understand why magnesium deficiency predisposes people to disease, Bruce Ames and researchers at Children’s Hospital Oakland Research Institute in California studied the long-term effects of moderate magnesium deficiency on human fibroblasts, cells that provide a structural framework for many tissues in the body.
They cultured the cells for their entire lifespan, a period of three to four months, to mimic the effects of a lack of magnesium in the study which appears in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. They found that while the cells survived and divided normally under moderate magnesium-depleted conditions, they appeared to become older quicker than cells grown in normal magnesium concentrations.
”Magnesium deficiency affects the way the cells age. Accelerated cellular aging affects the way tissue functions, “ said David Killilea, an associate staff scientist in the Nutrition and Metabolism Center at Children’s Hospital Oakland Research Institute. “We are now thinking that cellular consequences of magnesium deficiency may be driving long-term chronic disease.
Ames and Killilea suggested the markers of accelerated cellular aging in magnesium-deficient cells may indicate that the cells were in triage mode, saving resources for indispensable metabolic processes at the expense of long-term function. As for diagnosing and treating chronic moderate magnesium deficiency, there is no good laboratory marker for this type of condition. It tends to fly under the radar, the scientists said.
“You could be moderately deficient for a long time and not know it,” said Killilea.
Food sources rich in the micronutrient include dark chocolate, dark, leafy greens, beans, nuts, and unrefined grains. Soaking in magnesium chloride bath salts has been found to be a more rapid, safe way to restore magnesium levels.
Magnesium and Pain Relief
Americans’ intake of magnesium dropped 50% in the last century, and the consequences have been quite painful.
“Many people suffer needless pain-including fibromyalgia, migraines and muscle cramps because they do not get enough magnesium,” says Dr. Mildred Seelig, a leading researcher at UNC. The problem is made worse when people load up on calcium, thinking it will help, when, in fact, an overabundance of calcium flushes magnesium out of cells, compromising the effectiveness of both minerals.
Prescription meds such as antidepressants, tranquillizers and pain meds only treat the symptoms. Magnesium successfully treats the symptoms while it addresses the cause of much of the pain and disease we experience. In fact, pain and certain diseases are a residual effect of magnesium deficiency.
It has been found that important pain receptors are blocked by magnesium, thus providing pain relief. When these pain receptors are made more excitable because of magnesium deficiency, the experience of pain is greater. Several neuropathic disorders including diabetic peripheral neuropathy, postherpetic neuralgia, reflex sympathetic dystrophy, post surgical/traumatic neuropathy, toxic and idiopathic neuropathies share similar pain perception pathways that will be helped by magnesium supplementation delivered locally and systemically by using transdermal magnesium chloride.
Natural pain relief with transdermal magnesium chloride therapy is safe and effective. Magnesium may act as a good alternative to opiate painkillers whose addictive effects are permeating society and are even now getting into the hands of our young people. Most pain meds are not safe; even the over the counter medications hold unforeseen dangers. Acetaminophen branded as Tylenol, Excedrin, Nyquil and others can ruin the liver.
Magnesium chloride, when applied directly to the skin is quickly absorbed and has an almost immediate effect on chronic pain. The therapeutic effect of magnesium baths using Epsom salts draws inflammation out of the muscles and joints. 2-4 lbs. per bath is recommended by Dr. Carolyn Dean and others. What is essential to remember about treating pain with magnesium is that it treats both the symptom and the cause of pain, meaning the cause of pain can often be traced to a magnesium deficiency. Transdermally applied magnesium easily belongs in the middle of every pain program and can be used in conjunction with all other pain medications.
We Can Help
The Magnesium Shoppe offers many types of products to help you get more magnesium into your system and life. Gel, oil, bath flakes and body butter are some of our products.
Please visit our shop for all your magnesium needs.
Reading Recommendations
- The Magnesium Factor by Mildred S. Seelig, M.D., MPH, Master, American College of Nutrition
- The Magnesium Miracle by Carolyn Dean, M.D., N.D.
- Transdermal Magnesium Therapy by Mark Sircus, Ac., O.M.D.