You may have noticed an increase in muscle cramps or aches & pains…maybe your sleep or energy is poor. Or maybe myself or another practitioner has said you may need a ‘top up’ of magnesium after having a chat with you. So….what does magnesium deficiency….& what can you do about it??!
Magnesium deficiency symptoms may be an increase in headaches/migraines, heart palpitations, muscle pain & cramps, high blood pressure, poor sleep, fatigue, anxiety & also osteoporosis.
There are 4 key factors which may be contributing to magnesium deficiency:
- Magnesium Deplete Dieter – insufficient intake with lack of wholegrains, green leafy vegetables, legumes & dietary fibre. Often eats over-processed nutrient-poor foods, & modern farming techniques depletes mineral content.
- Magnesium Malabsorber – conditions such as Crohn’s, IBS, Coeliacs or ulcerative colitis poorly absorb magnesium. Symptoms of nausea, bloating, abdominal pain or cramping, undigested food in stools or diarrhoea can be occurring.
- Magnesium Hyper-excreter – increased excretion due to stress, renal impairment, &/or certain medications. You may have anxiety or feel unable to cope with stress, exercise excessively, feel ‘wired but tired’, consume high amounts of alcohol, or are diabetic or have insulin resistance.
- Magnesium Demander – lifestyle stages can increase magnesium demand such as during pregnancy/breastfeeding, ageing, intense exercise, highly stressed (& therefore ‘acidosis’ present), chronic alcohol consumption, menstrual/hormonal changes.
As you can see from above….it seems most people will be magnesium deficient. The key is to know the ‘why’ so you can make the dietary & lifestyle changes yourself…as well as taking the right magnesium supplement for you!
So how can I increase magnesium rich foods into my diet??
- Increase oats, barley, buckwheat, quinoa, kidney & azuki beans, lentils, chickpeas, bananas, avocado, & apricots.
- Increase sprouted/soaked legumes, nuts & seeds to improve digestibility & bioavailability of nutrients , whilst reduces FODMAPS, lectins, oxalates, phytates & even salicylates.
- Decrease soft drinks, processed meats & dairy as they are high in phosphorous & reduce magnesium absorption.
- Reduce exposure to aluminium found in cookware, medications, powders, deodorants & even baked goods, as aluminium can be depleted absorption 5-fold.
- Be mindful of calcium intake, as >10mg/kg/day decreases magnesium absorption.
- Reduce alcohol & coffee consumption.
It’s important to know…chronic magnesium deficiency is often associated with normal serum magnesium despite deficiency in cells & in bone; the response to oral supplementation is slow & may take up to 40 weeks to reach a steady state. If you’d like to know more & which magnesium is right for you….please book an appointment today!
Ref:
- Barbagallo, M., Veronese, N., & Dominguez, L. J. (2021). Magnesium in aging, health and diseases. Nutrients, 13(2), 463.
- Ahmed, F., & Mohammed, A. (2019). Magnesium: the forgotten electrolyte—a review on hypomagnesemia. Medical Sciences, 7(4), 56.
- Arancibia-Hernándeza, Y. L., Hernández-Cruza, E. Y., & Pedraza-Chaverria, J. (2023). Magnesium (Mg2+) Deficiency, Not Well-Recognized Non-Infectious Pandemic: Origin and Consequence of Chronic Inflammatory and Oxidative Stress-Associated Diseases. Cell Physiol Biochem, 57(S1), 1-23.
- Pickering, G., Mazur, A., Trousselard, M., Bienkowski, P., Yaltsewa, N., Amessou, M., Noah, L., & Pouteau, E. (2020). Magnesium Status and Stress: The Vicious Circle Concept Revisited. Nutrients, 12(12), 3672. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu12123672
