Magnesium Benefits, Sources And Side Effects

Many nuts and seeds, grains and legumes and fruits and vegetables contain magnesium. Some of the richest dietary sources of magnesium include:

• Almonds
• Cashew nuts
• Peanuts and peanut butter
• Spinach
• Black beans
• Potatoes with skin
• Avocado
• Banana
• Pumpkin seeds
• Dark chocolate and unsweetened cocoa powder

Magnesium is a macromineral (like calcium, sodium and phosphorus), which means that we need more than 100 mg of it a day. It is important for several functions in the body such as:

• Enzyme production: Enzymes are proteins that facilitate reactions responsible for all bodily processes from respiration to digestion and reproduction. Magnesium activates 600 enzymes and is a cofactor in the production of some 300 enzymes in the body (cofactor means it has to be present to help the process along though it isn’t an ingredient in these enzymes).
• Heart health: A study with 9,820 participants, more than half of them women, found a link between low magnesium levels in the blood and coronary heart disease and sudden cardiac death. The researchers said that magnesium controls heart rhythm and carotid intima-media thickness (thickness of intima and media, two layers of the carotid arteries that supply blood to the face, neck and brain), but they could not yet figure out the actual mechanism of why or how low blood magnesium leads to such negative outcomes for heart health.
• Bone health: Magnesium activates vitamin D in the body and helps maintain the calcium-phosphate homeostasis in the body to grow and keep bones healthy. The calcium-phosphate homeostasis (calcium and phosphate maintain a delicate balance in the body; when the amount of calcium in the blood is high, phosphate declines and vice-versa). Research also shows that magnesium deficiency is a risk factor for osteoporosis.
• Healthy nervous system: Magnesium helps nerves transmit messages and in neuromuscular conduction. It also protects nerves against excitotoxicity—when nerve cells become overly stimulated and start to die. Inadequate levels of magnesium are linked to mental health issues like depression and different types of dementia including Alzheimer’s disease. Research shows that magnesium may help to prevent and treat neurological conditions such as migraine and depression. It may also have therapeutic value for people living with anxiety and anxiety-related disorders, chronic pain and stroke risk.
• Body temperature: Magnesium helps the body to regulate temperature. Doctors use this knowledge to induce therapeutic hypothermia (drop in temperature) using magnesium sulphate for the treatment of acute stroke.
• Better sleep: Magnesium is said to improve sleep quality in people who have difficulty sleeping. Prescribed supplements may even help some people with insomnia due to restless legs syndrome.
• During periods: Low quantities of magnesium in the blood is linked to premenstrual syndrome. Additionally, taking magnesium during periods has been shown to prevent menstruation migraines and fluid retention.
• During pregnancy: Magnesium is important for the development of the baby. That’s why the requirement for magnesium in pregnant women is roughly 12% more than women of the same age group who are not expecting. Magnesium supplements during pregnancy may help to reduce the risk of preeclampsia and intrauterine fetal growth restriction.

The healthy body contains about 25 grams of magnesium—roughly 60% of it is in the bones, 20% in skeletal muscle, 19% in soft tissues and a marginal amount in bodily fluids like the blood. 

According to a new report by FSSAI, daily magnesium intake may vary depending on age and gender. How much magnesium should one take in a day? These may be the daily requirements of magnesium for different age groups:

• Infants (1-3 years): 80 mg per day
• Children (4-8 years): 130 mg per day
• Teenagers (9-13 years): 240 mg per day for girls and 240 mg per day for boys
• Teenagers (14-18 years): 360 mg per day for girls and 410 mg per day for boys
• Adult women (19-30 years): 310 mg per day
• Adult men (19-30 years): 400 mg per day
• Adult women (31 years and above): 320 mg per day
• Adult men (31 years and above): 420 mg per day
• Pregnant women: 350-360 mg per day
• Breastfeeding women: 310-320 mg per day

Magnesium is involved in many important functions in the body, good sources of magnesium include green leafy vegetables, nuts, seeds, and whole grains.

It is difficult to get too much magnesium from food, as the kidneys usually do a good job of flushing out the extra with urine. In people who overdose on magnesium supplements or those who have a kidney problem that gets in the way of proper disposal of extra magnesium, the following symptoms may be seen:

• Nausea
• Diarrhoea
• Stomach cramps

In extreme cases, excess magnesium could lead to

• Low blood pressure (hypotension)
• Nausea and vomiting
• Face turning red (flushing)
• Urine retention
• Depression
• Lethargy
• Muscle weakness
• Difficulty breathing
• Irregular heartbeat
• Cardiac arrest

There are a lot of magnesium supplements available in the market. But before you take one, consider these three things:

• It’s important to remember that most of us can indeed get our daily minimum dose of magnesium from food. For those of us who need extra magnesium or can’t absorb magnesium from food properly because of health conditions like diabetes or GERD, a doctor may recommend magnesium supplements.
• If you have been asked to take magnesium supplements by a doctor, take only the recommended dosage as excess magnesium can cause symptoms ranging from cramps and nausea to diarrhoea.
• Magnesium can interfere with some medicines. So if you are on antibiotics or taking bisphosphonates for osteoporosis, talk to your doctor about the appropriate time gap between taking the medicine and magnesium supplements.

Magnesium plays an important role in almost every part of our body. Its use improves energy production, protein synthesis, DNA and RNA synthesis, and antioxidant defense system in the body. Magnesium is also important for bone strength, muscle function, and nervous system activity.

Magnesium deficiency can cause problems like muscle cramps, fatigue, irregular heart rate, and mental disorders and if magnesium deficiency persists for a long time, it can increase the risk of high blood pressure, heart disease, type 2 diabetes, and osteoporosis. To ensure adequate magnesium intake, it is important to include these foods in your daily diet. If necessary, magnesium supplements can also be used on the advice of a health expert.