Vitamin D, omega 3’s are the nutrients du
jour but these usurped calcium and Vitamin E. You know how it goes and many of
you have the old supplement bottles demonstrating these shifts. Few things bug
me more than the nutrition pendulum and often the pendulum completely misses
the food, vitamin or mineral I feel we should focus on (clearly I don’t write
the headlines). In this case, I’m wondering why we’re not mindful of magnesium?
Magnesium is a mineral present in food and
the body. Magnesium is required for muscle contraction (a reminder the
heart is a muscle), nerve function and magnesium plays a role in blood pressure
and bone health. So it’s important. The key issue though is that under
mental or physical stress cells release magnesium and it is excreted, bye bye
precious magnesium. If stress is chronic or extreme you may be deficient in
magnesium.
Low magnesium can affect GI function ("going"), exercise
recovery and PMS-related mood changes. In one study, after a month of magnesium
supplementation participants were found to have decreased PMS and improved mood
as shown via their “Menstrual
Distress Questionnaire scores”. Oh my goodness, my family would give me such
poor menstrual distress scores. Magnesium is also required for metabolic
reactions such as the metabolism of carbs and fats to produce energy. Magnesium
is important for athletes as low
magnesium levels result in higher heart rates during exertion.
Most people don’t consume enough magnesium.
Once again, seeds are significant pumpkin, hemp (pictured above) and sesame top the list.
Spinach, cacao and lentils and black beans are also good. I also love a
powdered magnesium supplement called Natural Calm I take at bedtime.
Unfortunately, testing to see if magnesium is low isn’t all that helpful. A
low percentage of magnesium is found in blood. I think the better bet is to put
magnesium-rich foods front and center (1 seed a day) during your day and
consider a modest amount of supplementation. That is if your bones, blood
pressure, mood or bowel function matters to you.
Is magnesium on
your radar? Do you supplement magnesium? If so why did you start taking it? Any
“menstrual distress”?
