More than just preaching you to have a balanced diet, there are often a few minerals that get overlooked when overemphasizing the need for vitamin C or D. However, one modestly essential nutrient for the proper functioning of the human body and its cells, is Magnesium. As the fourth most abundant mineral in your body, it is often underplayed although it is responsible for so many vital functions and can easily be derived from various food sources, which are both seldom mentioned.1
For Proteins And Enzymes
Magnesium is super essential for binding human proteins together and research has discovered over 3750 magnesium-bound locations on human proteins. What’s more is that the smooth functioning of over 300 kinds of enzymes, depends on magnesium, including making sure you grow proper bones and teeth.
Sugar In Your Blood
It helps modulate the blood sugar levels in your body and even keeps the sensitivity of your insulin in check, both of which are essential to keep your chances of Type 2 diabetes at bay. In fact, studies have shown that those with higher magnesium consumption had a 70% lower risk of being affected by blood sugar rises and even metabolism issues.
Some Needed Hearting
Magnesium is crucial to keep the heart beating and functioning in order, deficiencies have shown to cause cardiovascular diseases, sudden cardiac arrest and even death. It also helps ease your blood vessels which are carrying blood around your body non-stop and balances the body’s metabolism.
Mind The Mood
With tremendous neurological responsibilities, magnesium deficiency can cause headaches to migraines, anxiety to depression, as it monitors the neurotransmitters for moods, such as serotonin.
Much Needed Detox
Keeping your liver and kidneys busy with filtering all those nasty toxins out from your body, little does one know that magnesium is primarily responsible for those organs’ jobs. Detox functions such as the oxidization process called glutathione, keeps your cells protected from exposure to toxins especially excess oxygen.
M’s Might For Mitochondria
Magnesium is a core component for improving the functions of our body’s mitochondria (tiny bacteria like organisms in the cells which process and create energy for our body’s cells). Magnesium is responsible for the creation of adenosine triphosphate (ATP), created majorly in the mitochondria, which is the major source of energy required for your cells to take action such as muscle and nerve functions, even preventing rheumatoid muscle disorders such as fibromyalgia. Influencing our body so greatly it supplies the defenses needed to fight diseases, especially ones that cause cancer, gives cells the needed energy to keep you going every day, gives you stamina during exercise and improves your cells capacity for consuming oxygen, thereby improving your overall performance.
Here Are Some Ways On How To Find, Expand And Improve Your Magnesium Intake
The Quest For The Illusive M
Lab or blood tests are still not equipped to determine the exact amount of magnesium in your body yet, that’s because a lot of it is located in your bones or tissues, so only a fraction may show up in your blood, with the best test being an RBC magnesium test. But, some other ways to check your magnesium levels include, checking yourself for early signs of magnesium deficiency, also called, ‘Charlie horses’, which is a muscle spasm you get when you stretch your legs. Other symptoms include headaches or even migraines, having no appetite, feeling nauseous or even vomiting, as well as fatigue or weakness. If your deficiency is more serious, you may see symptoms like seizures, tingling sensations or constant numbness, personality changes and even strange heartbeat rhythms or murmurs.
Organic vs. Processed Foods
Magnesium levels in your food unfortunately depend on how rich it is in the soil, but since you can’t be keeping a close watch on the farmer who grows your veggies and fruits, unless it is yourself, do purchase and eat organic and unprocessed farm grown foods, although even that has no guarantee on how much magnesium you are actually getting. Moreover, consuming too much processed foods in fact overrides the magnesium functions and makes your cells slower and less able to process vital functions in the body. Eating too much sugar especially increases insulin levels beyond magnesium’s reach and presto, it’s gone. Resulting in around 50 to 80 % of US population having magnesium deficiency.
Amount Of M Per day
Since produce was grown in such nutrient-rich soil about 100 years ago, their magnesium intake was something they never really thought about, as it was always around 500 mg a day, but in our modern day times, we get only about 150 to 300 mg per day from what we eat, when we need to be getting between 300 to 900 mg/day based on your age and gender.
Food With M
The chlorophyll of leafy greens is where magnesium loves to relax. So grab some of those dark green leafy vegetables be it spinach, bok choy, broccoli, beet greens, turnip greens, spring onions, Swiss chard, Brussel sprouts, cabbage, kale, lettuce and the like. Juicing or grinding them into liquid form also helps you really get everything you can out of them. Some other containers include, raw cacao or unsweetened or unprocessed cocoa powder, an ounce of which has around 65 mg of magnesium, as well as other nutrients such as iron and antioxidants. A medium sized avocado gives about 60 mg of magnesium, as well as the needed potassium, fiber and vitamins which remove excessive sodium in the system. A cup of seeds and nuts such as sunflower, pumpkin and sesame seeds give between 30 to 50 % the daily needed magnesium intake. While almonds and cashews can give a whopping 80 mg of magnesium. Besides the omega-3 fatty acids, fish such as half a fillet of salmon give 50 mg of magnesium. Fruits and berries including squash, papaya, watermelon, strawberries, tomatoes, raspberries give about 20 to 60 mg of magnesium. Finally, your favorite garnish, herbs and spices are tiny packs of rich magnesium such as chives, mustard seeds, fennel, basil, cloves, coriander and cumin seeds.
Expanding Your Cells
Working out more helps increase the number of mitochondria you have and new cells to be generated, kind of like optimizing your body, but this requires a lot of magnesium rich food, to be able to repair damages quicker and improve the cellular ability to optimize functions.
Supplement It
If you’re unable to reach your recommended daily dose of magnesium, over-the-counter supplements are readily available. However, do watch out as too much acts as a laxative. So do test your guts out and increase your intake from 200 mg to more depending on how soft your poop is. Another option is to divide that big mg supplement into 2 or 3 mg parts throughout the day. A recommended magnesium supplement is magnesium threonate, as it possesses everything needed to enter your cells, boost energy including entering the brain’s blood stream and possibly improving memory. Do pair this up with enough vitamin B12, Coenzyme Q10, calcium, vitamin K2, and vitamin D, as they all work hand-in-hand and one of them being low could cause some serious cardiac issues. For example, keep your vitamin D and calcium a little higher than your magnesium levels.
Just, Chill
Do you realize stressing out also stresses the magnesium out of your body’s cells? Yes, this includes worrying, lack of sleep, boozing too much and even taking too many antibiotics or pharmaceutical pills which have fluoride, statins, and diuretics. So, to counter this try relaxing in a bath mixed with some Epsom salt, as it is rich in magnesium sulfate and can be absorbed by your body through your skin.
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