8 Amazing Health Benefits of Magnesium

Amid all the hype about healthy eating, where every day seems to bring a new superfood or nutritional trend, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed. Between choosing the right foods and navigating the advice of dieticians and influencers, it can sometimes seem like you’re back in chemistry class, studying the periodic table all over again. Did you ever imagine that elements like iron, calcium, potassium, and zinc would become such crucial players in your health?

One mineral that’s been getting a lot of attention lately is Magnesium. As the fourth most abundant mineral in your body, magnesium plays a critical role in maintaining your overall well-being. But what exactly does it do for you, and why is it so important? Let's dive into the fascinating world of magnesium and uncover what does the body need magnesium for.

Give Your Health a Boost with Magnesium

Magnesium is one of the most important minerals that helps maintain good health. Associated with helping a wide variety of physiological activities, magnesium also helps in the synthesis of protein and energy.

In addition, it is crucial for good health because it is involved in more than 300 biochemical activities in the body.2 Typically, your bones contain about 60% of the body's magnesium, with the rest distributed throughout soft tissues, muscles, and fluids.3 In a nutshell, here’s what magnesium does for the body:

• It ensures that the nervous system and muscles work perfectly
• It maintains bone density
• It helps in making bones and DNA
• It helps maintain blood pressure and glucose levels within healthy ranges

Moreover, magnesium is also said to ward off diabetes and cardiovascular disease. Generally, diets rich in calcium, vitamin D, or protein elevate the need for magnesium in the body. However, it is important to note that taking magnesium supplements at this stage can cause adverse effects.

Benefits of Magnesium

Sadly, magnesium is often overlooked while discussing the essential minerals our bodies require. However, here are 8 reasons why this mineral is crucial to your health, thereby clearing what does magnesium do for the human body:

1. Can Support Optimal Brain Function

The neuromuscular conduction and nerve transmission of our body, both rely on magnesium. The chemicals that convey messages all across your nervous system and brain are called neurotransmitters. Magnesium helps in controlling these neurotransmitters. Furthermore, this mineral helps in maintaining normal brain function, which further improves learning, memory, and emotional stability.

2. May Promote a Steady Heartbeat

Your heart relies on magnesium to maintain a regular rate. Magnesium helps in regulating calcium, which is a vital mineral for cardiac contractions. In short, sufficient magnesium levels promote a normal and healthy heart rate by warding off arrhythmia, aka irregular heartbeats.

3. Helps Lower the Risk of Heart Disease

Magnesium contributes to heart health by regulating cholesterol levels, reducing blood pressure, and preventing artery calcification. All of these factors add up and make magnesium a vital mineral for cardiovascular health since it reduces the likelihood of developing chronic heart disease.

4. Can Aid in Regulating Muscle

Next up is muscle contractions. Magnesium plays a crucial role in the proper functioning of the muscle. It helps relax muscles after contraction, which is extremely important to prevent spasms and cramps. Generally, people who participate in regular physical exercise or who are athletes should pay special attention to regulating their magnesium levels.

5. May Assist in Lowering Blood Pressure

As per studies, magnesium supplementation can help in lowering high blood pressure. This is especially true for people who already have hypertension. This decrease is facilitated by magnesium's capacity to relax the blood vessels, thereby making it a natural solution for maintaining normal blood pressure levels.

6. Can Enhance Blood Sugar Management in Type 2 Diabetes

Magnesium helps in regulating insulin and healthy glucose levels in the body. People with Type 2 diabetes can especially benefit from taking magnesium supplements as prescribed by the doctor or including the mineral in their diet.

7. Can Improve Sleep Quality

This is yet another answer to the question of what magnesium does for your body. Due to its calming effects on the nervous system, magnesium can help you get better sleep for prolonged hours. Basically, it plays a role in the regulation of melatonin, which is the hormone that controls your sleep-wake cycle. It helps to relax your mind and body.

8. May Alleviate Symptoms of Depression

Low levels of magnesium have been directly associated with an increased risk of depression. Generally, magnesium supports the production of serotonin, which is a mood-regulating neurotransmitter. By maintaining a normal magnesium level, you can potentially eliminate the potential symptoms of depression and improve your overall mood.

>> Also Read: What are the Symptoms of Calcium Deficiency?

Recommended Daily Intake

Depending on your age and gender, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) has recommended a certain amount of magnesium for daily consumption. As per the guidelines, men in their adult years can consume 400-420 mg of magnesium per day, while women must aim for 310-320 mg per day.

Below is a tabular representation 1 and a breakdown of the RDA (recommended daily allowance) for magnesium as per age and sex. Take a look.

Sources of Magnesium

In most cases, getting enough magnesium should be as simple as consuming a balanced diet that is rich in magnesium. A healthy diet is indeed a perfect means to get the minerals naturally because they are readily available in different foods. To name a few, you can find a good amount of magnesium in nuts, whole grains, seeds, and leafy greens.

Nevertheless, there are a lot of people who are deprived of the mineral. This causes a magnesium deficiency, which can further cause serious health issues. At this point, doctors may prescribe magnesium supplements in severe cases.

You can find magnesium in dietary supplements and multivitamins. Magnesium aspartate, magnesium citrate, magnesium lactate, and magnesium chloride are some of the supplements that the body can absorb easily. In addition, certain laxatives and products for acid reflux and indigestion also contain magnesium. However, make sure you don’t self-prescribe. This can cause an overdose, further worsening your health.

How Much is too Much?

Anything above the recommended dosage is precarious . Usually, the naturally occurring magnesium in food and drink does not pose any significant risk or require any restriction. Moreover, it is quite rare for a person to experience a high level of magnesium through a normal diet. Yet again, even if they do, healthy people can easily get rid of the surplus via urine.

However, when a doctor prescribes a high intake of magnesium supplements, it may lead to an excess in the body. Although rare, these cases may cause gastrointestinal issues like cramps, nausea, or diarrhoea.

On the contrary, when magnesium is consumed more than the upper limit without any doctor’s recommendation, it can lead to an excessive dosage. This may further result in depression, drowsiness, irregular heartbeat, cardiac arrest, nausea and vomiting, low blood pressure, urine retention, lethargy, loss of CNS (central nervous system) and potentially even death.

Moreover, magnesium supplements must be avoided by those with kidney disorders unless specifically recommended by their physician.

The Bottom Line

In summary, magnesium is a powerful mineral that supports your body's essential functions. However, ensuring the right balance of magnesium levels is important for preventing health risks. It is generally easy to overlook how too much of a good thing can turn harmful. High magnesium levels, often resulting from excessive supplementation, can lead to conditions like confusion, irregular heartbeats, and even life-threatening conditions if left untreated.

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