Why Your Blood Needs Magnesium (Know The Benefits)

Why Your Blood Needs Magnesium (Find Out Here)

When you are feeling stressed, your body starts pumping out adrenaline which can cause you to feel more anxiety and panic.

Our bodies need magnesium for many important functions, such as controlling blood sugar levels, regulate blood pressure and the nervous system, and reduce feelings of anxiety.

It also helps to regulate muscle contractions and is the key mineral that keeps the DNA in our cells healthy.

Magnesium is a mineral that is found naturally in our foods. It is an essential nutrient for all living organisms including humans.

The adult human body contains about 25 grams of magnesium. Over 60% of all the magnesium in the body is found in the skeleton, 27% is in the muscle and 10% is the blood.

In this blog article, we will discuss the health benefits of magnesium, talk about how you can get enough of it in your diet, explore the importance of it for your blood health, and what symptoms might be a sign that you’re not getting enough.

What is magnesium and what does it do in your blood?

Magnesium is a mineral nutrient that your blood needs to stay healthy.

Magnesium is important for many processes in the body, including regulating muscle and nerve function, blood sugar levels, blood pressure, making protein, bone function, and DNA.

A sufficient intake of magnesium into your blood is important as it helps the body to:

• Use carbohydrates and fats to produce energy
• Conduct nerve impulses
• Contract muscles
• Regulate heart beats
• Regulate calcium, copper, zinc, potassium, and vitamin D levels

The european food safety authority (EFSA) which provides scientific advice to assist policy makers has confirmed that clear health benefits have been established for the dietary intake of magnesium in contributing to:

• Electrolyte balance
• Energy-yielding metabolism
• Cell division
• Maintenance of bones and teeth
• Protein synthesis

Why Your Blood Needs Magnesium (Know The Reasons)

Dietary intake or supplementation of magnesium has beneficial effects on your health, and there are several reasons why your blood needs this mineral nutrient.

High Blood Pressure

Eating low-fat dairy products along with lots of fruits and vegetables on a regular basis lowers high blood pressure.

All of these foods are rich in magnesium as well as calcium and potassium. Singling out which of these nutrients is responsible for lowering blood pressure is difficult.

A clinical study found that a higher intake of dietary magnesium may decrease the development of high blood pressure in women.

Heart Disease

One large study found that, increasing magnesium levels in the blood decreases the risk of heart disease in women but not in men.

However, the risk of heart disease in the group with the lowest intake of dietary magnesium intake was not significantly higher than the risk in men or women with the highest intake.

Currently, the relationship between dietary magnesium intake and the risk of heart disease remains unclear.

Stroke

Results from population studies suggest that people with low magnesium in their diet may be at greater risk of stroke.

Some clinical evidence suggests that magnesium sulfate may be helpful in the treatment of stroke or a temporary disturbance of blood supply to an area of the brain.

Diabetes

Type 2 diabetes is as a result of low levels of magnesium in the blood. A large clinical study found that higher dietary intake of magnesium may protect against development of type 2 diabetes.

Magnesium was found to improve insulin sensitivity in these people, reducing the risk of developing type 2 diabetes.

Other clinical studies have found similar results, especially in old age people.

Magnesium deficiency in diabetic patients may decrease immunity, making them more susceptible to infections and illnesses.

What causes low magnesium levels in your blood?

Magnesium levels may be low due to many factors:

• Low dietary intake
• Diarrhea
• Chemotherapies
• Certain medications

What foods provides magnesium for the blood?

Magnesium is found in a wide variety of foods.

High magnesium foods:

• Beet greens
• Black-eyed peas
• Blackstrap molasses
• Brewer’s yeast
• Buckwheat
• Flax seeds

Medium magnesium foods:

• Dry Apricots
• Black Beans
• Brown rice
• Coconut meats
• Dates
• Figs

Low magnesium foods:

• Avocado
• Barley
• Beans
• Beets
• Blackberry
• Cheese

What about magnesium supplements?

Magnesium is available in multivitamin-mineral supplements and other dietary supplements.

Forms of magnesium in dietary supplements that are more easily
absorbed by the body are magnesium aspartate, magnesium citrate, magnesium lactate, and magnesium chloride.

Magnesium is also included in some laxatives and products for treating heartburns and indigestion.

Eating magnesium-rich foods is not always enough to correct a low blood magnesium level, especially if you are taking cyclosporine.

Intravenous magnesium or oral magnesium supplements may be needed.

Oral supplements may cause looser stools and should be increased gradually for best tolerance.

Compared to magnesium-rich foods, supplements can provide more magnesium which is beneficial if your level is very low due to medication.

Commonly used magnesium supplements include:

• Magnesium oxide: 400mg tabs
• Magnesium plus protein: 133mg tabs
• Magnesium citrate: 100mg tabs

Tips for optimal absorption of magnesium supplements:

• Take with meals
• Take separate from calcium and phosphorus supplements
• Distribute throughout the day, rather than taking once or twice daily

How much magnesium do you need?

The amount of magnesium you need depends on your age and sex. Average daily recommended amounts are listed below in milligrams:

Infants

• 0-6 months: 30mg
• 7-12 months: 75 mg

Children

• 1-3 years: 80 mg
• 4-8 years: 130 mg
• 9-13 years: 240mg

Teens

• Teen boys 14-19 years: 410mg
• Teen girls 14-19 years: 360mg

Adults

• Men: 400-420mg
• Women: 310-320mg
• Pregnant women: 350–360mg
• Breastfeeding women: 310–320mg

What happens if you have low or high levels of magnesium in your blood?

Despite the fact that dietary levels of magnesium are often low, actual deficiency of this nutrient is rare.

Certain medical conditions, however, can upset the body’s magnesium balance.

For example, intestinal flu with vomiting can cause temporary magnesium deficiencies.

Certain stomach and bowel diseases, diabetes, pancreatitis, kidney malfunction, and use of diuretics can lead to deficiencies.

Too much coffee, soda, salt, alcohol intake as well as heavy menstrual periods, excessive sweating, and prolonged stress can also lower magnesium levels.

Symptoms of magnesium deficiency in your blood may include:

• Agitation and anxiety
• Restless leg syndrome
• Sleep disorders
• Irritability
• Nausea and vomiting
• Abnormal heart beats
• Muscle spasm and weakness
• Hyperventilation
• Insomnia
• Poor nail growth
• Seizures

Is magnesium toxic to the blood?

Magnesium that is naturally present in food is not harmful to your blood and does not need to be limited. In healthy people, the kidneys can get rid of any excess in the urine.

But magnesium in dietary supplements and medications, should not be consumed in amounts above the upper limit, unless recommended by a healthcare provider.

The daily upper limits for dietary
magnesium are listed below.

• Children 1–3 years: 65 mg
• Children 4–8 years: 110 mg
• Children 9–18 years: 350 mg
• Adults: 350 mg

For many age groups, the upper limit appears to be lower than the
recommended amount.

This occurs because the recommended amounts include magnesium from all sources such as food, dietary supplements and medications.

The upper limits include magnesium from only dietary supplements and medications; they do not include magnesium found naturally in food.

Takeaway

Magnesium is a mineral nutrient that helps with many of the body’s systems, including the immune system, heart, bones and teeth.

It plays an important role in many processes and is essential to your body’s ability to function properly.

In fact you need magnesium to help you achieve optimum health and prevent deficiencies.

Make sure you eat magnesium-rich foods to get enough of this mineral nutrient in your diet.

Incorporating dietary magnesium-rich foods into your diet should follow the recommended daily amounts and must not exceed the upper limits.

We hope you found some useful information on this blog and that you will consider adding magnesium to your diet for better overall health.

Related Post: Why Your Blood Needs Potassium