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September 19, 2018

Supplementation for success: the key mineral you lack

Supplementierung für den Erfolg: Der Schlüsselmineralstoff, an dem es Dir mangelt

Magnesium is crucial for your health in many ways. Learn which foods are the best sources of magnesium and why you should start supplementing with this important mineral.

Although magnesium is best known as the relaxing ingredient in the popular supplement ZMA, the benefits of magnesium are extremely impressive and go far beyond promoting healthy sleep.

In this article, you'll learn all about this key mineral and how regular supplementation can take your health and even your body development a step forward.

Background information on magnesium and magnesium deficiency

Magnesium is the fourth most abundant mineral in the human body and is the second most abundant electrolyte. Magnesium is a key co-factor in over 300 metabolic reactions in the body.

Some of the most important roles of magnesium include (1, 2, 3):

  • Protein synthesis
  • Muscle and nerve function
  • Control of blood sugar levels
  • Regulation of blood pressure
  • Energy production
  • DNA synthesis
  • Muscle contraction

With such a wide range of functions, a magnesium deficiency will always be a serious cause for concern. The official recommended intake of magnesium is 420 mg for men and 310 mg for women (4).

Scientists estimate that at least 60% of the Western world's population does not get this recommended amount from their diet. You should bear in mind that these values are well below the optimal range for athletes or people who want to optimize their health and body development (5).

The biggest problem with magnesium intake is the limited access to natural sources. Although magnesium is found in many foods, there is no primary food source that contains a large amount of high quality magnesium. The foods with the highest magnesium content include whole grains, spinach, nuts, legumes and potatoes. However, you would have to eat unrealistically high amounts of these foods to get large amounts of magnesium (6).

Foods

Mg per serving

Percent of requirement*

Roasted almonds, 30 grams

80

20

Boiled spinach, 1/2 cup

78

20

Roasted cashews, 30 grams

74

19

Roasted peanuts 1/4 cup

63

16

Soy milk, 1 cup

61

15

Black beans, cooked, 1/2 cup

60

15

Edamame, peeled, cooked, 1/2 cup

50

13

Peanut butter, 2 tablespoons

49

12

Wholemeal wheat bread, 2 slices

46

12

Avocado, diced, 1 cup

44

11

Baked potatoes with skin, 100g

43

11

Brown rice, cooked, 1/2 cup

42

11

Low-fat yogurt, 250 g

42

11

Canned kidney beans, 1/2 cup

35

9

Banana, medium

32

8

Salmon, cooked, 100 g

26

7

Milk, 1 cup

24-27

6-7

Halibut, cooked, 100g

24

6

Raisins, 1/2 cup

23

6

Grilled chicken breast, 100 g

22

6

Minced beef, 10% fat, roasted, 100 g

20

5

Broccoli, cooked, 1/2 cup

12

3

Source: Gebhardt, S., Lemar, L., Haytowitz, D., Pehrsson, P., Nickle, M., Showell, B., ... & Holden, J. M. (2008). USDA national nutrient database for standard reference, release 21.

In addition to the problems of getting enough magnesium from the diet, there are a large number of factors that can reduce the rate of magnesium absorption and storage. These include (7):

  • Excessive alcohol consumption, diuretics, coffee, tea, salt, phosphoric acid (soft drinks), calcium, potassium and sugar
  • Severe stress
  • Medication and supplements (aminoglycosides, cyclosporine, azathioprine, large amounts of vitamin D).
  • Various illnesses and conditions (vomiting, diarrhea, kidney transplants, etc.)
  • Insufficient fluid consumption

The most common way to determine a magnesium deficiency is to measure the total serum concentration. A healthy range is between 0.7 and 1.05 mM (8). However, most of the body's magnesium is stored in bone, muscle and soft tissue, while only about 1% of magnesium is dissolved in serum (9).

For this reason, measuring total serum concentration is probably not an effective way to diagnose magnesium deficiency unless there is a severe deficiency (10). This means that it is possible that a large majority of the population suffers from a magnesium deficiency that is just not severe enough to be identifiable by a serum concentration measurement.

Signs of a minor magnesium deficiency include loss of appetite, nausea, vomiting, fatigue, exhaustion and weakness. When such a deficiency becomes more severe, other problems such as cardiac arrhythmias, tingling, numbness, muscle twitching, cramps, seizures and coronary spasms may occur (2, 4).

It's important to note that most people with inadequate magnesium stores will not experience serious symptoms, and there is a good chance that you too may have less than optimal magnesium levels that could affect your health and performance.

Prolonged magnesium deficiency has been linked to a number of chronic conditions, including migraines, Alzheimer's disease, high blood pressure. Cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes (12, 13, 14).

Whether you are trying to improve your health, reduce the risk of disease, improve your performance or your body's development, magnesium supplementation is certainly important.

The benefits of magnesium supplementation

In addition to helping to prevent all the negative effects of magnesium deficiency described above, magnesium supplementation has been shown to be effective in treating a range of conditions. Some of the most relevant benefits are listed below:

Depression

Magnesium has numerous effects on brain chemistry - and neurotransmitters in particular. An imbalance of these neurotransmitters is thought to be one of the main causes of depression, which is why a magnesium deficiency has been linked to the development of depression (15, 16, 17, 18, 19).

To support this, a study review and meta-analysis found an association between low magnesium levels and increased incidence of depression (16, 17). Oral magnesium supplementation could prevent depression and is therefore also used as an alternative therapy (15, 16).

Magnesium therapy has been shown to alleviate symptoms of depression in women suffering from postmenopausal syndrome and in patients suffering from chronic fatigue syndrome (20, 21).

High blood pressure and cardiovascular disease

Hypertension (elevated blood pressure), which affects a large percentage of the population, is one of the primary risk factors for heart disease and stroke. Recent studies have found that one benefit of regular magnesium supplementation is its unique ability to lower blood pressure (22).

A meta-analysis involving over 1000 adults concluded that magnesium supplementation over a period of 3 to 24 weeks could reduce systolic blood pressure by 3-4 mmHg and diastolic blood pressure by 2-3 mmHg. Although this may sound like very minor changes, these changes can be very beneficial and relevant in the long term when combined with a healthy diet, lifestyle and exercise program (22).

Higher magnesium intake could also reduce the risk of stroke, which is closely related to blood pressure. Another meta-analysis, which included 7 studies with a total of 241,378 participants, concluded that an additional 100 mg of magnesium per day may be associated with an 8% reduced risk of stroke, particularly for ischemic (heart-based) strokes (23).

The final confirmation was provided by 2 studies in which the authors found that the individuals with the highest serum magnesium levels and the highest magnesium intake had a reduced risk of sudden cardiac death and ischemic heart disease. In other words, the higher the magnesium levels, the lower the risk of cardiovascular death or cardiovascular disease (24, 25).

Exercise performance

Like other minerals and electrolytes, magnesium is known for its role in exercise performance and weight training. First and foremost, magnesium plays a key role in muscle contraction. In other words, it helps your muscles to shorten and lengthen in order to perform movements and generate power.

Interestingly, magnesium requirements can increase by 10 to 20% during exercise, highlighting the importance of magnesium for athletes and those who exercise regularly (26).

Controlled studies have shown that magnesium supplementation has the following benefits (27, 28, 29, 30, 31):

  • Increased exercise performance
  • A reduction in pain and discomfort caused by an accumulation of lactic acid
  • A reduction in negative changes in the levels of stress hormones
  • Support for regeneration
  • A reduction in high insulin levels

Improvements in performance have been observed in team athletes such as volleyball players, who were able to improve their jumping performance, as well as in triathletes, who were able to run, cycle and swim faster (28, 31).

Type 2 diabetes

Other research has found that diets that include lower amounts of magnesium are associated with a significantly higher risk of diabetes, which may have something to do with the significant role magnesium plays in blood glucose metabolism (34, 35).

Some of the most impressive research can be found in two meta-analyses, which concluded that magnesium supplementation can reduce the risk of diabetes by 15 to 23% (34, 36).

In controlled studies, patients with diabetes supplemented with 600 mg of elemental magnesium and experienced improved blood glucose control (40). In another study, administration of 300 mg of elemental magnesium over a 16-week period resulted in a significant reduction in fasting blood glucose levels and HbA1c, which is a marker of long-term metabolism and glycemic control (41).

For anyone trying to improve their body composition, magnesium may help to better metabolize the carbohydrates they consume and maintain healthy insulin function. As we know, insulin sensitivity is a key factor in health, disease risk reduction and body composition.

If insulin sensitivity is high, this will help transport nutrients to the muscles for regeneration, growth and energy supply. On the other hand, if glucose metabolism is not functioning correctly, you may well store more fat and increase your risk of disease.

Sleep problems

We all know how important restful sleep is for health, fat loss and performance. Nearly 50% of all older adults suffer from insomnia. They have trouble falling asleep, wake up early or don't feel refreshed after waking up (43). Even a single night of poor sleep can result in impaired performance and blood sugar metabolism, and in the long run, too little or poor sleep will make it harder for you to build muscle or lose fat.

Magnesium - more specifically ZMA - is a good remedy for insomnia and is also used by many users to improve sleep quality in general.

This is because magnesium is a natural component of N-methyl-D-aspartic acid (NMDA) and a friend of GABA receptors, which appear to play a critical role in regulating sleep (43). GABA is a calming neurotransmitter that the brain needs to switch off. Without GABA, we remain mentally active, our thoughts spin and we lie in bed staring at the ceiling.

Only a few studies have been carried out to date that have investigated the relationship between magnesium and sleep. However, the results to date suggest that magnesium supplementation may increase sleep time and sleep efficiency while improving markers of sleep quality (44, 45).

If sleep is the primary focus, then magnesium supplementation can be supported by other vitamins, minerals and supplements such as zinc, vitamin B6 and/or melatonin to further improve sleep and recovery (46, 47).

How should you supplement magnesium?

Typical doses for magnesium supplementation range from 200 to 400 mg, but there are many different forms of magnesium available on the market that may alter your dosing strategy (48).

In general, magnesium citrate is a good choice for supplementation. However, in principle, any form of magnesium can be used to reduce a magnesium deficit, with magnesium L-threonate containing less elemental magnesium than other forms.

Supplementation with magnesium oxide or magnesium chloride may result in gastrointestinal side effects such as diarrhea, as these forms of magnesium have a lower absorption rate. Last but not least, it should be mentioned that a magnesium supplement should be taken with food to improve absorption.

Start today by taking about 400 mg of magnesium citrate with your last meal of the day. Combining it with a slow-digesting protein such as a casein shake is a surefire way to support your muscle growth during the night while promoting sleep quality, relaxation and recovery.

References

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Source: https://www.muscleandstrength.com/articles/magnesium-key-mineral-deficit

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