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#087 The Science of Magnesium and Its Role in Aging and Disease | Dr. Rhonda Patrick
#087 The Science of Magnesium and Its Role in Aging and Disease | Dr. Rhonda Patrick

#087 The Science of Magnesium and Its Role in Aging and Disease | Dr. Rhonda Patrick

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Rhonda Patrick
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Mar 19, 2024
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Episode Transcript
0:00
Hello friends today's episode is a deep dive into the science of magnesium an essential mineral that we need to get from our diet because it is required for 300 different metabolic reactions inside the body and yet almost half of
0:14
the US population does not have adequate intake this topic is near and dear to my heart why you may
0:19
ask it takes me back to the
0:21
early days of my postdoctoral research in the laboratory of dr. Bruce Ames Bruce. You see imparted upon me
0:27
his passion or should I say love?
0:30
For all
0:30
things micronutrients
0:32
Bruce's pet Theory the triage Theory of Aging argues that when we have suboptimal dietary micro
0:38
nutrient intake for
0:40
example, not getting enough magnesium our body
0:42
sacrifices the long term for the short term
0:45
that essentially by having a diet that is inadequate
0:48
in one or many micronutrients
0:50
even without the
0:51
presentation of clinically over disease. We produce a sort of Insidious damage that accumulates over time that leads to an accelerated.
1:00
And of Aging because of the diverse role
1:02
magnesium plays in metabolism and the human body and also because of the pervasive inadequacy of its
1:08
intake magnesium was ultimately a key focal point of
1:12
his theories and our research learn more about dr. Bruce Ames now 95 years old
1:19
and his extremely prolific scientific career producing literally
1:23
thousands of papers by searching Google
1:25
Scholar for his name or simply the words triage Theory.
1:29
You can
1:30
also check out our throwback old episode together on the triage Theory of Aging episode number four in this episode we go deep on magnesium. Hey, I learned from the best. So stay tuned to learn about why people who
1:45
sweat need more magnesium the factors that limit magnesium bioavailability including plant phytates and excessive supplemental
1:52
zinc why alcohol consumption makes magnesium deficiency more likely why organic magnesium salts are the best
1:59
type of supplement
2:00
I told magnesium why you should space out your magnesium supplement intake why supplemental magnesium three and eight isn't the best option for meeting daily magnesium needs
2:10
why mental and physical stress can deplete magnesium whether or not magnesium
2:15
supplementation improves sleep the associations between magnesium
2:19
intake and brain health the
2:20
role of magnesium in managing migraines how
2:23
magnesium deficiency affects the aging process via
2:26
accumulated DNA damage
2:28
magnesium's role.
2:29
In cancer prevention
2:30
why adequate magnesium intake early in life is an investment in your long-term bone health and reducing your risk of osteoporosis. As you age The crucial Synergy between magnesium and vitamin D metabolism. Why inadequate magnesium intake May hinder the body's ability to utilize vitamin D
2:50
effectively, even if vitamin D intake is sufficient the role of magnesium in lowering high blood pressure
2:56
and the effectiveness of magnesium for the prevention and
3:00
Treatment of muscle cramps and so
3:02
much more before we dig our teeth into this episode on a deep dive into magnesium.
3:07
I want to encourage you to do what's right by your
3:09
cognition by that. I mean, you should stop what you're doing right now. Yes, you can hit the pause button and come back and go download my comprehensive guide the cognitive
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3:19
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3:55
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3:58
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4:00
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4:00
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4:03
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4:05
These Protocols are grounded in scientific evidence and hold great promise for enhancing cognitive health and neuroprotection for those eager to explore a wider array of cognitive enhancement techniques. I encourage you to download this insightful guide visit bdnf protocols.com now to access this invaluable tool and now onto all
4:25
things magnesium,
4:27
welcome to the found my fitness podcast. I'm your host.
4:29
Is Rhonda Patrick there is a lever you can pull every day to significantly enhance your body's ability to repair damage to your DNA
4:37
potentially reducing cancer risk in a dose-dependent manner. This is the power of magnesium a
4:43
mineral that plays a foundational role in our health yet is often overlooked the stakes of magnesium deficiency are high affecting crucial biological
4:51
processes, like DNA repair replication and transcription when
4:55
these processes are compromised due to insufficient magnesium. It
4:59
can lead to the development.
4:59
Element a potentially cancer-causing mutations
5:02
more alarmingly recent studies indicate a potential link between insufficient magnesium levels and
5:08
accelerated brain volume loss which could hasten the onset of dementia as we
5:12
age I'm here to unpack the science behind magnesium often termed as the most prevalent
5:18
micronutrient deficiency
5:20
and its profound implications for nearly 45
5:22
percent of the u.s. Population who was falling short nearly half of the population. The United States doesn't get enough magnesium.
5:29
Marilee because our diets lack
5:31
sufficient dark leafy greens where magnesium is abundantly found hidden within the chlorophyll that gives plants their vibrant green
5:38
color. That means that roughly half of
5:40
you watching or listening to this episode right now have inadequate magnesium intake
5:46
in the landscape of essential nutrients magnesium is a giant it's
5:50
part of a triode of micronutrients that when
5:52
deficient have far-reaching impacts on our health. Let's dive deep into the reasons that make
5:57
magnesium a key player in maintaining.
5:59
In our well-being and how boosting your intake
6:02
could be a critical step towards Optimal
6:04
Health magnesium is a
6:06
cofactor for about 300 different enzymes in our bodies, which are special proteins that perform functions
6:12
magnesium is required for these enzymes to work properly. So to put that into perspective our bodies have around 75,000 types of enzymes. So the enzymes that need magnesium make up about 0.4% of all the enzymes in our body this shows that while magnesium's role as specific. It's
6:28
crucial for a
6:29
A wide range of bodily functions which are we are going to discuss
6:33
today? So adult women generally need about three hundred and ten to three hundred and twenty milligrams a day which increases to about 360 milligrams a day during pregnancy adult men require about four hundred to four hundred and twenty milligrams a day and athletes and those that are have high physical activity including people that are also regular sauna users may need additionally about 10 to 20 percent above
6:57
the recommended dietary allowance.
6:59
Due
7:00
to their greater magnesium loss through urine and sweat. There's data from nutritional
7:04
surveys like nhanes revealing that the average intake of magnesium in the u.s. Falls
7:10
below the RDA. So the typical intake for women is around two hundred and thirty milligrams per
7:15
day while men consume about 320 milligrams per day. So this deficit is more pronounced in female
7:22
athletes who are at a higher risk of magnesium
7:24
deficiency. Such deficiency can potentially lead to serious health
7:27
issues including arrhythmias like
7:29
Atrial fibrillation as well as muscle spasms and other
7:32
complications what makes the situation worse is that the RDA value is based on the absolute
7:38
minimum amount necessary in order to prevent severe diseases associated with magnesium deficiency. So even if you're meeting that 300 to 400 milligrams per day threshold, you are still only running at the bare minimum necessary to function
7:55
magnesium plays a really
7:56
important role in maintaining healthy electrolyte balance.
7:59
Preventing dehydration it helps regulate the body's balance of electrolytes, which are pretty important for conducting nerve impulses Contracting muscles.
8:08
Also maintaining a healthy heart rhythm. So when the body is deficient in magnesium, it
8:12
can disrupt this balance and that could potentially lead to dehydration and other related
8:17
complications. So this aspect of
8:19
magnesium's role is particularly important for athletes and those again with high physical activity as they're more susceptible to these electrolyte imbalances due to increased sweat and fluid loss good
8:29
do
8:29
dietary sources of magnesium
8:31
include dark leafy greens legumes nuts seeds whole grains brown rice and fish like mackerel the net
8:38
absorption of magnesium and the diet is only about 50 percent. It's
8:42
even lower with high fiber diets, but most of the studies that have found this are studies where they feed people
8:49
super high amounts of
8:50
fiber, which most people aren't getting even
8:52
when they have a high plant Rich diet. So a big reason for poor magnesium
8:57
bioavailability in plant sources it be
8:59
Because magnesium is bound to phytate in plants and there are ways to increase bioavailability
9:05
of magnesium from plants. And that is by activating phytase has these are enzymes that break down phytate. So for example, if
9:14
you heat up oats, or you cook your leafy greens or legumes or you germinate or you sprout your grains and seeds all of these things decrease phytate levels because they activate those enzymes that are called phytase has so as it turns out.
9:29
Shout both wheat and yeast also have strong phytase
9:34
activity during the baking process. So
9:37
there are ways that again, you know, we just heat itself but
9:42
also germination and sprouting and heating up. Oh, it's cooking leafy greens. These are all ways that we increase magnesium bioavailability from plant sources because of the activation of the fight Aces the other
9:55
really important factor that can limit the bioavailability of magnesium
9:59
Is excessive
10:01
supplemental Zinc at doses higher than 124 mg a day, which is
10:07
quite High that's well
10:09
above the RDA and people should not be taking that much think on a daily
10:13
basis because it can also
10:15
inhibit the absorption of other Trace
10:16
elements for example copper there is an exception. So the exception
10:20
of people doing a little bit of a mega sort of a higher dose of zinc would be during illness or the onset of illness where higher zinc do supplementation.
10:29
In like in the order of for example, 80 milligrams a
10:32
day has been shown to
10:33
lessen respiratory illness symptoms and decreased duration of illness as well.
10:37
So I would say that, you know taking high high
10:41
doses of zinc on a very very short-term basis where it's just a couple of days is different than what you know, someone whose daily supplementing with a high dose of zinc because it can inhibit magnesium
10:53
absorption diet composition is the main reason
10:56
magnesium insufficiency and deficiency are so common.
10:59
Typical standard American diet is high in calories. It's low in micro nutrients including magnesium. So eating a calorically dense meal full of processed foods Meats dairy products. These are poor sources of magnesium in contrast green vegetables, like dark leafy greens are rich in magnesium because of their chlorophyll content museum is at the center of a chlorophyll
11:21
molecule. Another reason is bioavailability, which we
11:24
just discussed magnesium is only so bioavailable from certain foods like
11:29
Like the plant sources and so ways of increasing their bioavailability like heating up greens or sprouting and germination. Like we discussed also improves magnesium bioavailability
11:40
and the last
11:41
reason that magnesium insufficiency and deficiency are common is because there's certain health conditions and lifestyle choices that can Inlet that can lead to increased magnesium excretion. So for example, diabetes leads to this as well as alcohol consumption, so alcohol can increase
11:59
The rate at which the body excretes magnesium despite normal absorption rates in the gut because it acts like a diuretic so it leads to increased urine production and then losses of magnesium through urine. So this diuretic effect contributes to a higher rate of magnesium being filtered out by the kidneys and expelled in urine rather than being absorbed and used in the
12:19
body. I think the logical question is how do you know if you're getting enough magnesium will naturally one would think a blood test might help shed some light but unfortunately most of the time it does
12:29
not and the reason for this
12:31
is because magnesium levels are
12:33
assessed in plasma and I'm going to take a moment to explain this because I think it's important. So the average person has slightly less than one ounce of magnesium and their body
12:41
roughly 60% of all the Magnesium is found in the skeleton. So most of our magnesium is found in our bones about 27% is found in the muscle and six to seven percent is found. In other cells less
12:51
than 1% is found outside of ourselves about 1/3 of the magnesium in the
12:57
bones is exchangeable in other words. It's
12:59
Serves the bones are serving
13:01
as a reservoir so that the body can draw from it in times of need. So when magnesium levels are low the body
13:09
will draw from the bones to get that magnesium because it's so so important.
13:14
So most of the time magnesium will be pulled from the bones into plasma to maintain optimal levels the
13:19
body regulates plasma magnesium concentrations within a very narrow range typically around 0.72 1 millimolar per liter if
13:29
If plasma magnesium levels drop below this range, it could lead to hypomagnesemia, which is you know can cause all sorts of problems muscle weakness Tremors seizures abnormal heart rhythms and other potentially serious complications. So our body will just continually pull from our bones to prevent magnesium levels from going below zero point seven mmol per liter for this reason plasma magnesium is not a good indicator of magnesium status for most healthy adults similarly.
13:59
Bad blood cell magnesium test which measures magnesium inside red blood cells
14:05
while it might provide a better indication of magnesium status than plasma levels. It's still may not
14:11
fully represent total body magnesium content. So
14:14
both tests are more likely to identify.
14:17
I would say more severe magnesium deficiency rather than a mild or moderate deficiency or something that we would call magnesium
14:26
insufficiency. So really to ensure adequate magnesium
14:29
in take the
14:30
most practical approach is to track and calculate the Magnesium content in your diet. This
14:35
involves being a little more mindful of the Magnesium
14:37
rich foods. You consume such as green vegetables, like leafy greens nuts seeds grains fish. The usda's food data central is a good resource for estimating the micronutrient and macronutrient content in various Foods. So that would
14:51
include magnesium it still I personally think it's still a good idea to get a
14:57
plasma or a red blood cell.
14:59
Test just to rule out severe
15:01
deficiency, but not to use it as a guide of right whether or
15:06
not you have Optimum levels of magnesium or you have sufficient magnesium levels. It's really just to rule out severe
15:13
deficiency. So naturally the next question on people's minds are what about
15:17
magnesium supplements.
15:19
Where do they fit in? What if I don't get enough
15:21
magnesium from dietary sources. Can I
15:24
supplement? So let's start with
15:27
supplemental magnesium
15:29
Has
15:29
so how much is too much The
15:31
u.s. Institute of medicines food and nutrition board has set the upper safe limit for daily supplemental magnesium intake at 350 mg
15:40
per day. So this is the level considered, you know that it's unlikely to
15:43
cause diarrhea or gastrointestinal issues for most people diarrhea is the first sign of excessive magnesium supplementation. It's often used
15:52
therapeutically as a laxative, but this is a bit of a conservative dose.
15:55
It does not include magnesium from dietary
15:58
sources, so
15:59
In other words, there's no evidence that going above the
16:02
RDA for magnesium is harmful. In
16:04
fact, some evidence suggests that it may even be beneficial
16:08
particularly. If the Magnesium is mostly coming from dietary sources
16:12
for optimal bioavailability of magnesium supplements. It's also generally more effective
16:17
to take the total daily dose in divided smaller amounts rather than a single large dose. So this approach allows for more efficient absorption by the body. It can also minimize
16:29
As the potential GI discomfort so smaller spaced out doses. They're processed better by the digestive system. And this also ensures maximum absorption utilization of the Magnesium the bioavailability of different magnesium supplements does vary and it's not fully standardized in studies clinical research on organic magnesium salts. So these include magnesium citrate magnesium glycinate magnesium tolerate these
17:00
Magnesium malate is also in there. These organic salt forms of magnesium are generally more
17:07
bioavailable and effectively raise plasma magnesium levels compared to inorganic forms of magnesium like magnesium oxide magnesium chloride magnesium sulfate.
17:19
So organic magnesium
17:20
salt are better absorbed in the digestive tract. It can lead to more significant increase in magnesium levels in the
17:26
blood and I think this for this reason it makes
17:29
makes them more effective choices for supplementing magnesium and also of course addressing deficiencies, but
17:35
just to eliminate any confusion
17:38
the term organic in this context refers to the presence of carbon being in the acid molecule. So
17:45
we're not talking about
17:46
agricultural standard of being organically grown here. It's a different
17:50
term magnesium sulfate can be taken orally but in this is an inorganic form, but it's
17:55
often more commonly used as Epsom salt for a transdermal.
17:59
Through the skin applications when it's taken orally it can act as a laxative and it's used therapeutically
18:06
as a laxative the effectiveness of Epsom salt
18:08
particularly in Bath's is unclear. We'll talk about this a little bit later because the transdermal absorption of magnesium through Epsom salt baths really hasn't been conclusively proven,
18:17
but let's talk about another
18:18
form of magnesium called magnesium 308
18:21
magnesium 3 and 8 is a form of magnesium that has garnered a lot of
18:25
attention because of its potential impact on brain function.
18:29
So
18:29
generally only a
18:30
small portion of the Magnesium ingested in a supplement form reaches the brain and this is due to the intricate active transport symptom systems that control the progression of magnesium from the digestive tract into the bloodstream and then subsequently from the bloodstream across the blood-brain barrier
18:47
the body establishes and manages a very tight concentration gradient. It creates a higher
18:52
magnesium level in the blood compared to the cerebral spinal fluid
18:56
and that allows a
18:58
very controlled
18:59
Quantity of magnesium that can actually get transported into the
19:02
brain. This precise regulation is really important to
19:05
maintaining this equilibrium of magnesium necessary for optimal brain function. So in
19:10
humans, it's been found that even an increase up to 300% in blood magnesium results in less than
19:18
19 percent change in the cerebral spinal fluid magnesium content
19:23
and I think this really highlights the significant role
19:25
that physiological processes and maintaining magnesium balanced play.
19:29
Say which then influence the brain health and function.
19:32
So some animal evidence suggests that magnesium three and eight can easily get across the
19:37
blood-brain barrier
19:37
and at a human equivalent dose of
19:41
8.1 milligrams per kilogram body weight. So that would be around six hundred and sixty two milligrams for 180 pound person can improve cognition and decreased amyloid-beta plaques. Now, this is in the brains of mice
19:54
and it's thought that the Magnesium three and a is uniquely
19:57
effective in crossing the blood-brain barrier.
19:59
Year due to its specific molecular structure. So this
20:02
form of magnesium is chelated to the ironic acid and that is a metabolite of vitamin C. So this chelation
20:10
enhances its ability to pass through the blood-brain barrier or so. It's thought the
20:16
precise mechanism by which magnesium 3 and
20:19
8 bypasses this tightly regulated concentration gradient between the blood and the brain is not fully understood.
20:26
It is believe though that its molecular structure.
20:29
Sure, does somehow
20:30
facilitate easier entry into the brain, thereby increasing concentration of magnesium in the brain more effectively than other forms of magnesium. That is solely based on a very small and limited number of animal studies when we turn to human studies only a couple have explored the effects of magnesium 3 and 8. So
20:50
these studies are I want to point out
20:53
industry-funded which does invite us to consider a potential conflict of interest.
20:58
So the initial
21:00
That I think garnered a lot of attention was published in 2016. It was a small scale study that only had 40 for
21:08
participants total those in the treatment group took daily doses of about 1,500 to 2,000 milligrams of magnesium 3 and 8. So this is Mark marketed as mag teen and they
21:21
took it for over
21:22
12 weeks based. So this was based on their body weight. That's why there's a range in
21:26
DOS the findings of this study. I
21:29
We think are underwhelming. So the
21:31
treatment group only achieved a marginal increase in plasma magnesium levels with no elevation noted in red blood cell magnesium levels compared to the placebo group.
21:41
Additionally. There was a significant increase in urinary magnesium which
21:46
suggests that most of the supplemented Magnesium 3 and 8 was actually being excreted through urine.
21:50
There is some cognitive tests that were also done. There was no
21:54
significant difference observed when each of these four different,
21:59
Your cognitive tests were looked at in isolation compared to the placebo group.
22:04
But if the data was all pulled together, so all
22:07
for cognitive tests were then pull together. Then there was a suggested mystically significant difference in cognitive function compared to the placebo group,
22:19
obviously the suggest a degree of statistical uncertainty in the
22:22
studies conclusions, whether or not it was just due to a small sample size. I said, there's only 44 people in the study.
22:29
If there were four hundred and forty-four people there would have been more of a stronger signal and the data wouldn't have had to have been pulled together or maybe there really isn't much of an effect. There's no
22:41
telling the second study was also
22:44
industry-funded which I think is important to keep in mind. This study was published in 2022
22:51
and it involved 100 participants
22:53
and the treatment group was given 400 mg of magnesium three and a along
22:59
Vitamins C DB 6 and phosphatidyl serine in contrast the placebo group received only 2 grams of a starch
23:07
capsule. So despite the absence of any
23:09
elevation of serum or brain magnesium levels. The treatment group did have improved cognitive test performance compared to the placebo
23:17
group. I would say this study raises pretty significant
23:21
questions around causations because the treatment group was not just given magnesium three and eight they were given a variety of
23:29
Ottomans, they were given by ottoman see by the B vitamins vitamin D
23:34
be 6, but they were also given
23:36
phosphatidyl serine.
23:37
So I think to a be able to establish a solid
23:40
conclusion that magnesium 3 and 8 is responsible for improving cognitive function.
23:45
The placebo group should have gotten all those other vitamins and the
23:47
phosphatidyl serine but not the Magnesium 3 & 8.
23:51
However that was not the way the study was done. So in
23:53
my opinion, I think it's an interesting study but really no conclusions can be stated directly.
23:59
About magnesium three and eight
24:01
itself. So I think a concluding statement with respect to
24:05
supplemental magnesium. There's a few concluding statements one to enhance bioavailability. It's advisable to take smaller frequent doses of magnesium supplements organic magnesium salts, like magnesium glycinate were magnesium
24:18
tolerate are
24:19
generally more readily absorbed than inorganic forms like magnesium oxide.
24:24
I also think there's some added benefits of these organic salts for example taking magnesium.
24:29
Cesium glycinate also
24:31
gives you some accompanying compounds like glycine. So glycine could potentially be beneficial at least According to some studies. Also magnesium tolerate would give you Tarin which also may have some health advantages but that's the subject of another
24:45
podcast. There is some caution that should be taken without, you know, not wanting to exceed
24:51
super super high doses of magnesium. So 350 mg per day is the safe upper limit and that
24:59
For either organic or inorganic magnesium supplements, if you
25:03
go above that, you may get GI side
25:05
effects. So that's something to keep in mind. I would say a really important take away from this section is
25:13
magnesium 3 and 8 is not the best option
25:17
for meeting daily magnesium
25:19
needs as outlined by the RDA. It shouldn't be included as
25:23
contributing to your recommended daily allowance of
25:26
magnesium and that is because magnesium
25:29
IAM three and eight contains a very
25:32
low amount of Elemental magnesium.
25:35
So if you are considering supplementing with magnesium three and eight for its potential brain health benefits, which I would say have not been established do not count that
25:46
magnesium dose towards your RDA goal.
25:49
So to ensure you're getting enough magnesium, you know, you need to calculate what you're getting from your foods, but also consider supplementing with other
25:57
organic magnesium forms like
25:59
Museum glycinate which does have a higher amount of Elemental magnesium
26:03
content as you can tell there are many different forms of magnesium available and natural question is what do I take the answer is a hedge my bets I take a supplement that has many different forms of magnesium salts, which seems logical to me. There are not many products. I have found that offer that one of them is magnesium by Moon Juice the other one. I sometimes take at night as magnesium glycinate by pure encapsulations. There are many different brands. I'm not affiliated with either of those but I know many of
26:29
If you want to know what I take, so there you have it the other area. I want to kind of dive into and I find very
26:34
interesting with respect to where magnesium plays a role in physiology is the stress response.
26:41
So the stress response that your body experiences involves the production of hormones stress
26:47
hormones, like adrenaline cortisol. Those stress hormones can potentially lead to a reduction or depletion of magnesium levels in the body. So these hormones are released during times of stress and then some
26:59
Quietly your body uses up more magnesium to
27:02
try to help manage the stress the stress reactions. So what ends up happening is this can reduce overall
27:08
amounts of magnesium available for other functions of the body.
27:13
So to better understand how stress
27:14
hormones like adrenaline can lead to magnesium deficiency or lower magnesium levels and its clinical implications.
27:23
There was a study by white at a law that looked at how
27:26
adrenaline which is a well-known stress hormone.
27:29
Own effects from magnesium
27:30
levels and what they found I personally thought was an interesting study they found when adrenaline was a infused into people. It didn't just temporarily lower magnesium levels. These levels stayed
27:44
significantly reduced
27:45
even an hour after
27:47
stopping the adrenaline infusion
27:49
without showing any immediate signs of bouncing back. So in other words the adrenaline immediately lowered magnesium levels and those levels
27:59
Stayed low for quite some time. There have been a range of studies that have found that stress exposure things that are stressful and are known
28:08
to increase cortisol. Adrenaline can influence magnesium levels both in blood and urine. So for example, young adults undergoing persistent or even intermittent stress, like for example, anticipating a military conflict,
28:22
they experienced substantial
28:24
decreases in their overall and plasma magnesium concentrations over three months.
28:29
There were similar
28:30
results or outcomes found when the impact of short-term. So this is a one-day and also a long
28:38
term which would be like a month of sleep deprivation on magnesium levels was examined. So this was done in healthy
28:44
men
28:45
and both short-term and long-term sleep deprivation causes reduction in magnesium red blood cells. So the the magnesium levels in red
28:56
blood cells with the long-term sleep
28:58
deprivation.
28:59
Being the the most robust
29:01
impact another study found an increase in anxiety levels and a
29:04
corresponding rise in urinary magnesium excretion in University students during exam time. So that would indicate if you're excreting more magnesium in your urine that you are not absorbing it and using it in your body
29:19
and another related study. This was done
29:22
over the course of four weeks. This was post exams researchers found a significant reduction in the concentration of magnesium in
29:29
Red blood cells among college students yet again sort of solidifying how the stress response will lower magnesium levels.
29:38
So yet another
29:39
study confirm this this was done in people that were impacted. They were affected by noise exposure. So they had been subjected to noise
29:49
exposure and their magnesium
29:52
levels, of course went down after the after the noise exposure and their urinary excretion peaked after a few hours.
29:59
Ours and it continued for Epi two days. So it seemed like there was some sort of long-term effect with respect to X treating more magnesium through urine, which is something I mentioned that alcohol also does just from that stress response from the very loud noise exposure.
30:15
It's interesting how our body magnesium levels respond not only to mental stress, but also physical stress like exercise so acute or short-term
30:26
stress can lead to a brief
30:28
spike in our blood
30:29
That magnesium levels. This is a
30:30
phenomenon known as transient hypermagnesemia. This has been observed in the aftermath of like short intense exercise sessions lasting around 20 minutes,
30:39
but after pushing your body hard, it appears. It rallies the Magnesium resources probably
30:46
to Aid in the energy production, you know and other vital functions, but when you start to engage in a more prolonged, let's say one hour session
30:53
that initial elevation in magnesium is not found and it seems
30:59
There's a threshold after which your body does not respond in that way
31:03
and magnesium levels then have been noted to go below what your Baseline resting levels
31:09
are so exercise does deplete magnesium. Let's talk briefly about why mental and physical stress can decrease magnesium. So the body's
31:18
neuroendocrine system responds to stress through a process that many will recognize as the fight or flight response. So this is primarily activated by the adrenal glands the hormones adrenaline and
31:29
Cortisol, rapidly increased during this response the responsible preparing the body for that for Action Now part of this preparation involves the mobilization of magnesium, which is a
31:40
crucial cofactor for enzymes that drive energy production
31:44
and utilization in the form of ATP. So during this stress response, the body rapidly pulls magnesium from the cells causes a
31:51
temporary surgeon serum serum magnesium
31:53
levels, but the catch is this mobilization of magnesium is not an infinite.
31:59
Resource so as the stress continues its extracting magnesium and it and then and then expelling it through the body
32:07
through urination which then gradually depletes our overall Body store of magnesium and then there's the role of cortisol which is often considered the primer the body's primary stress hormone. So when
32:18
cortisol levels rise it signals to the kidneys that they need to kick into
32:23
turbo mode and start expelling more magnesium out of the body
32:26
this action further reduces our bodies total.
32:29
It'll magnesium Supply and then on top of all this stress
32:33
also triggers certain hormones that can affect The Balancing Act of magnesium in our
32:37
body, especially in organs like the gut kidneys in the bones. So these hormones can result in less magnesium
32:44
getting absorbed in the intestines more getting expelled from the kidneys as I just mentioned leading to this downward spiral in magnesium levels. If we don't replenish it properly,
32:56
let's move on to another area that has gained popularity the role of
32:59
These humans sleep. So the role of magnesium and sleep has recently become a topic of Interest. We know that sleep deprivation can deplete magnesium levels, but does this create a cycle affecting Sleep Quality observational Studies have shown that adults with higher deck dietary magnesium intake often report better
33:16
sleep quality.
33:17
However, this could be the
33:18
healthy user bias. Right people with higher magnesium intake
33:21
might also have other
33:22
healthy habits contributing to good sleep.
33:25
Now when we look at randomized controlled trials the picture gets more complex.
33:29
A meta-analysis of some trials suggest that magnesium supplementation
33:33
can improve some sleep metrics including scores on the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index and also can improve sleep efficiency and duration
33:42
yet. The results across different studies are very
33:44
very mixed. There's quite a few studies out there showing that magnesium supplementation has no effect on sleep. So it really highlights the need for more research in this field.
33:55
I'm not going to say that magnesium supplementation will not improve sleep, but I will say
33:59
There is not strong evidence that magnesium supplementation will improve sleep. I do think this I have to go on a little bit of tangent here because randomized controlled trials in this field of
34:10
nutrition are very different than the gold standard of randomized controlled trials that are used with pharmaceutical drugs.
34:17
So we know that 45% of the population
34:21
has insufficient magnesium intake. Okay,
34:24
so 55% have sufficient levels of magnesium, so
34:29
When you're starting a clinical trial in nutrition with something like magnesium half the population in that trial are going
34:36
to are going to need that magnesium supplement and the
34:39
other half really aren't because they've already got sufficient magnesium intake. This is very different from a drug trial everyone at the start of a drug tile
34:47
trial has the same amount of drug in their system, which is
34:50
zero. So you either give the
34:53
person the drug or a placebo and
34:54
it's very clear that if there is an effect that it's because of the drug.
34:59
And that if there is not an effect, it's because the drug did not have an effect but in the case of magnesium, if you are not identifying
35:07
who is deficient or has insufficient magnesium at the start of the
35:11
trial then you're not going to know whether or not giving them a
35:16
supplement really is
35:18
important or going to make any difference because they might already have sufficient magnesium. So I think this really illustrates why it's so
35:25
important for nutritional randomized controlled
35:28
trials.
35:29
To account and to measure or at least at the very least look at dietary intake and magnesium and figure out
35:37
you know, who at the
35:38
start of this trial is deficient in this
35:41
nutrient that we are investigating. Let's start with that
35:44
population because essentially you're what you're looking at is giving some you're trying to avoid
35:51
deficiency, right and that and that's the real important thing here to avoid deficiency.
35:57
So with that said when I say
35:59
There's a lot of mixed results in these randomized
36:01
controlled trials with respect to magnesium and sleep or with respect to magnesium and fill-in-the-blank
36:06
effect, right? Whatever outcome we are looking at I think
36:10
it is very important for people to keep
36:13
in mind particularly poor
36:14
people that are you know, doing clinical trials in the medical field that have this mentality that randomized controlled trials are the gold standard because they are coming from this pharmaceutical background.
36:24
Keep in mind that nutrition is different because we
36:28
all have different
36:29
Starting levels of nutrients
36:31
and and it is very very important to measure these nutrients or in some way figure out at the start of the trial if our starting
36:39
population is low
36:41
in that nutrient if they're not then it's not, you know, then that's another question. That would
36:47
be is supplementing, you know, Supra levels going to do anything, right? That's a completely different question than avoiding deficiency.
36:55
All right, so sorry for that tangent, but I do think it's very important.
36:59
Because until we address these
37:02
trial flaws these fundamental methodological oversights. We're going to continue to
37:08
have conflicting data in the field of nutrition. So I think we need to improve study designs. We need to consider individual nutritional bass lines, you know, and until we do that we're going to continue facing confusion uncertainty
37:22
and a lot of
37:23
conflicting data with respect to nutritional
37:25
trials. Okay? So on that note, let's dive into brain health
37:29
With there's some pretty recent research that suggests. There's a potential
37:32
association between dietary magnesium intake and brain health. So this was an observational study using data from over six thousand participants. They were age 4273. It was UK biobank data and
37:45
those who reported a higher
37:47
magnesium intake had on average larger brain volumes which could convey up to approximately one year of reduced brain aging compared to those with lower magnesium
37:57
intakes. So the results
37:59
The old that said the higher dietary magnesium consumption. This was about five hundred and fifty milligrams per
38:04
day seem to correlate with larger gray matter and hippocampal volumes
38:10
than the average intake of about
38:12
350 mg per day, which is actually closer to the RDA.
38:16
This was actually
38:17
particularly notable in women, I would say this is an intriguing link obviously interpretation of these results have to recognize that these are observational studies. So they really can't provide a cause and effect.
38:29
Relationship only suggest a costs a possible Association. So the data is based on self-reported dietary intake that could be influenced
38:38
by other overall, you know dietary patterns or other factors, like lifestyle habits or health conditions to really I would say conclusively say state that magnesium is improving brain health by increasing brain volume is particularly gray matter in the hippocampal region of the brain. We would need to clinical trials, you know to substantiate that
38:59
Potential relationship those probably aren't going to be done. So kind of just have to look at this data and make what you want out
39:06
of it magnesium has been
39:08
linked to the development and progression of various age-related brain disorders higher cerebral magnesium levels have been shown to decrease oxidative stress and inflammation and improve synaptic plasticity also counteract other mechanisms leading to
39:23
neurodegeneration. So there was a recent systematic
39:25
review that revealed individuals with Alzheimer's disease.
39:29
Aziz also
39:30
have significantly lower
39:31
plasma magnesium levels compared to healthy controls. The researchers looked at a lot of data from different sources, like blood serum plasma the fluid around the brain the cerebrospinal fluid which help them sort of be more confident about their
39:42
findings. However, when they specifically
39:45
check the fluid the cerebral spinal fluid, it wasn't entirely clear.
39:49
So there was a hint that Alzheimer's patients might have lower
39:53
magnesium in the cerebral spinal fluid, but it wasn't as clear cut as in the plasma in the blood for
39:59
But in serum and a study that followed over 1,000 middle-aged
40:02
adults for 17 years researchers found that those who ate the most magnesium so they were getting at least a hundred ninety six milligrams
40:09
per day had a 37 percent lower chance of getting dementia when they got older compared to
40:14
those who ate the least magnesium so they were getting 174 mg per day or less. There was another study in people aged 60 and above who did not have dementia also showed that eating more magnesium. So this was at least
40:29
and 34 mg might help them from getting mild cognitive impairment, which is the stage before dementia
40:35
the numbers from this study suggest that
40:37
you know, the risk was much lower for those who ate more magnesium
40:42
and again another
40:43
observational study. This was 2000 over 2500 older adults who are mentally healthy again found higher magnesium intake this was over four hundred and seven milligrams per day was also linked to overall better brain function, but this benefit was actually only seen in women.
40:59
So again, all these studies are observational.
41:03
They're really only so showing Association. They really can't prove that higher magnesium intake directly causes these health benefits. We need more controlled trials clinical research to really establish that definitive link,
41:17
but we do know that magnesium is a vital coenzyme that plays a
41:22
crucial role in a variety of biochemical processes in the brain. So it serves as the key.
41:29
Factor in a variety of brain
41:31
specific enzymes. So adenosine triphosphate cases. These are ATP, ase's they're
41:37
crucial enzymes that control our ability to hydrolyze ATP, which is the major energy source for all of our cells very important in the
41:46
brain. So magnesium is a cofactor. It's
41:49
essential for those enzymes to properly function and you know, this is really important for the sodium potassium
41:57
atpase and the calcium
41:59
80 PS which helped establish this
42:01
electrochemical gradient across our cellular membranes in our brain. It's essential for neuronal function. Another enzyme would be involved with creatine. So everyone you've guys have heard of creatine.
42:13
Most people think about it in the context of bodybuilding muscle muscle mass but it also
42:19
is important in the brain as
42:21
well. So creatine passes
42:24
phosphate groups from phosphocreatine to
42:27
ADP to make
42:29
make
42:29
ATP that energy currency and so, you
42:32
know the enzymes that are doing this again require
42:36
magnesium to do
42:37
it. So
42:38
another reason why when magnesium would be important for the brain.
42:42
It's also important for another enzyme called glutamine synthetase. So this enzyme it
42:48
enables the conversion of glutamate into ammonia and glutamine and magnesium is required for the appropriate function of this enzyme
42:56
because and this is really critical because
42:59
Containing that
42:59
glutamate to glutamine balance and the brain is important for preventing
43:04
excitotoxin City. So this could
43:06
potentially lead to neuronal
43:08
damage. If you're not maintaining that balance you might have too much
43:11
glutamate which could lead to that excitotoxin citee and neurotoxicity. Right? So too much excitatory activity from
43:18
glutamate, you'll end up you could end up with a neuronal damage. So magnesium plays a this is just three examples of enzymes in the
43:26
brain where magnesium plays a critical function.
43:29
Ian and why magnesium is so crucial for brain function, I
43:32
would say one area with respect to
43:34
the brain where the data is a bit stronger is
43:36
migraines. So magnesium might
43:38
play a role in managing migraines, which is a condition that affects many people worldwide. There's recent randomized controlled trials that have really shed some light on magnesium's potential benefits for those suffering from
43:49
migraines. So what is happening in the brain during a migraine one key element is something
43:55
called cortical spreading depression. So it's a
43:57
kind of wave of
43:59
Activity that leads to visual and sensory changes. We often associate with migraine or has
44:04
so interestingly magnesium supplementation
44:07
seems to help prevent these waves, but there's a
44:10
little more to it magnesium may
44:11
also decrease the release of certain chemicals in the brain like substance p and glutamate which are known to transmit pain signals. So by reducing their release magnesium could play a role in lessening the pain
44:23
associated with migraines. Also it
44:25
might prevent the further narrowing of brain blood vessels.
44:29
Caused by serotonin another term neurotransmitter involved in migraines. So as it turns out
44:34
individuals who suffer from migraines are
44:36
often found to be deficient or have insufficient
44:40
magnesium. Now, this might not be entirely
44:42
surprising when we consider that nearly half the u.s. Population doesn't get enough magnesium in their
44:46
diet, but it does highlight
44:48
a potential link between widespread nutrition nutritional
44:50
gaps and specific health conditions, like migraines understanding these connections can offer us insights I think into simple yet.
44:59
Look for ways to improve our health. So there's results of Rome and randomized controlled trials that we're going to discuss
45:05
there were five randomized controlled trials that indicate that magnesium
45:09
supplementation can effectively reduce the frequency and intensity of migraine relapse has so magnesium
45:15
is believed to work by preventing cortical spreading
45:18
depression. The brain signaling waves often responsible for migraine Aura. We just talked about and additionally magnesium reduces those the release of those pain transmitting chemicals like substance p
45:29
He and glutamate the effective magnesium dose for preventing migraines seems to be around 600 milligrams per day, which is almost twice the suggested upper limit to minimize gastrointestinal discomfort. I think it's advisable to divide the dose into smaller amounts such as 200 mg taken three times throughout the day. This can really help minimize the, you know, the irritation on the digestive tract while still providing an effective dose for migraine.
45:59
Management so I mentioned this data comes from five
46:01
different randomized controlled
46:03
trials. I do think that while there's only a few studies the implications could be significant, you know migraines. They're not just
46:12
headaches. They're really complex neurological
46:14
events. So understanding how something is accessible
46:18
as a magnesium supplement for some people could mitigate these symptoms. I think is really
46:24
it's it offers New Hope in a potential new
46:26
Avenue for relief for
46:29
Some people so it's a great example of how diving deep into some of the brain science and understanding magnesium's role and looking at some of the clinical studies can kind of help lead to some practical everyday health
46:40
benefits. Let's move on to aging magnesium depletion is a slow process. So marginally low
46:46
intake would likely take years to
46:48
manifest but it would still take a toll. It's likely a factor in aging and the development of chronic disease. So I want to take a moment to discuss the concept that has been a significant focus in the field of nutrition
46:58
particularly.
46:59
Really
46:59
a theory put forth by my mentor. Dr. Bruce Ames who has introduced what is known as the triage Theory and
47:05
published several studies on it. It's really a fascinating
47:09
way to understand how our bodies deal with micronutrient scarcity like with
47:13
magnesium. So, dr. Ames has published several papers on this topic highlighting how Nature has possibly evolved a mechanism to
47:21
prioritize certain biological processes over others when micronutrient resources are limited. So magnesium for example is the
47:29
Key player in numerous biological functions some of these are critical for immediate survival and preventing diseases that could lead to acute life-threatening conditions.
47:38
However, magnesium is also
47:40
pivotal for long-term Health processes like DNA repair so deficiencies in DNA repair might not cause immediate harm
47:48
but they can lead to a gradual
47:49
accumulation of DNA damage
47:51
mutations that over time can then
47:53
become oncogenic or cancer-causing so the
47:56
triage Theory posits that in the face of
47:59
Limited magnesium the body will prioritize its
48:03
use for enzymes involved in essential short-term
48:06
survival such as enzymes like energy production. This means that other processes that are vital for long-term Health like DNA repair might get
48:16
less of this magnesium.
48:18
What's the end result? Well, we might not be getting enough magnesium. We might be getting enough to avoid acute deficiency even
48:25
pulling it from our bones to maintain levels in our muscles and other tissues.
48:29
Choose we could be, you know setting the stage for chronic health issues like osteoporosis down the
48:33
line. So I think this inadequate intake of magnesium and
48:37
micronutrients in
48:38
general can accumulate it's Insidious damage over time
48:42
in the context of magnesium when DNA repair and replication which both do require magnesium to properly function. They aren't functioning
48:49
optimally do to those inadequate levels. The accumulation of this damage can lead to these mutations cell
48:55
dysfunction and potentially cancer development
48:58
and it's a clear example
48:59
Ample of how you know subtle long-term effects of micronutrient
49:04
inadequacy or magnesium it can inadequacy in this case
49:08
can contribute to the aging process and the development of chronic disease. So we're talking about cancer. Let's dive in a little bit more into that topic magnesium does play a
49:18
crucial role in DNA repair
49:20
and this has implications
49:22
for cancer prevention.
49:23
So every day our DNA is facing damage from both internal sources like
49:29
Ilysm and
49:30
external forces things like UV radiation
49:33
pollution things like that as we age our DNA repair
49:37
mechanisms naturally slow down like everything
49:40
else. But when we're also low in magnesium, it's kind of like throwing gasoline on a fire
49:46
the risk of DNA damage
49:48
escalates magnesium is essential
49:50
for the proper functioning of DNA repair
49:52
enzymes. So consider
49:55
the sheer frequency of cell division in our
49:57
bodies.
49:59
Of cells divide daily with some tissues like our
50:02
skin and an intestinal lining they have exceptionally High turnover rates. So DNA replication, which is necessary to make a new cell is really vital for that, you know process of making a new cell and magnesium plays a
50:16
role in DNA replication as well. It's essential for the proper functioning of those enzymes called DNA polymerase has these are essentially the workhorses of cell division
50:28
without a
50:29
Adequate magnesium these processes can
50:31
be compromised and this could lead to potential errors and mutations when you are making new
50:38
DNA. Now, let's dive a little bit into the role of magnesium in what's called
50:43
Matrix metalloproteinase has or mmps. So
50:46
these are enzymes. They're they're more like agents of extracellular Matrix breakdown. They're
50:52
involved in critical processes, like tissue remodeling wound healing
50:57
and magnesium deficiency.
50:59
Upset the delicate balance here
51:01
with the activity of these MMP enzymes that also could potentially Aid in cancer cell Invasion and progression. So it plays a little Downstream role in cancer progression and cell Invasion.
51:14
But again, I think it really highlights the sort of broader impact of magnesium on cellular health cancer prevention and it's really an important
51:23
micronutrient that is just it's fundamentally, you know intertwined with our body's ability.
51:29
Duty to maintain what's called genetic integrity and to prevent the formation of you know, oncogenic cells which are cancer cells.
51:38
So let's talk about a study that followed
51:40
about over 66,000 men and women aged fifty to seventy six years
51:44
old. So this was part of the vitamins and lifestyle study or the vital study. It was from 2000 the year 2000 to 2008 among the 5151
51:56
participants who ended up developing pancreatic.
51:59
It cancer those with magnesium intake
52:01
below the RDA had a significantly higher risk of pancreatic cancer
52:07
specifically those getting seventy five to ninety nine percent of the RDA. The
52:11
risk was increased by 42% and for those with less than 75 percent of the RDA that wrist jump to 76 percent.
52:19
But what was even more striking about that study was that for every 100 mg per day decrease in magnesium intake there was a
52:29
an increase in a 24% increase in pancreatic cancer incidents. So this was in a dose-dependent matter every 100
52:37
mg decrease was associated with a 24% increase in pancreatic cancer incidents
52:42
and what's particularly interesting here is also the role of magnesium supplementation. So the inverse association between magnesium intake and pancreatic cancer risk seem to be more pronounced among
52:55
those who took magnesium supplements either from a
52:59
Vitamin or even as an individual supplement. So in other words what I'm saying is that within that cohort it wasn't just dietary intake.
53:09
It was also supplemental intake and people that were also supplementing with magnesium that was associated with a stronger decreased risk in pancreatic cancer. Obviously, it's important to approach findings with a very nuanced understanding right. This is still observational data still means correlation can't really
53:29
Establish causation there could be a variety of other factors that could influence this as well. So it's always important to keep in mind when we're talking about observational data. There was another study this was this was the Paris perspective study to which followed about 4,000 men aged 30 to 60 over 18 years old and and that study found that men with a highest magnesium levels that that was associated with a 40% lower all-cause mortality and a 50%
53:58
Or decrease in cancer death compared to those with the lowest magnesium levels
54:03
yet again all the caveats. I
54:05
just mentioned this was also an observational study.
54:07
So,
54:08
you know, the
54:10
I think the beauty of observational studies on honestly is is in their ability to reveal
54:15
these patterns these associations in large populations over extended periods.
54:19
So that is that is
54:21
really the beauty of observational data
54:23
and then you know, once you get that observational data, you kind of
54:27
need to approach it.
54:29
With a little bit more of a critical eye and and sort of also try to turn to some Interventional studies as well with respect to cancer incidence that's going to be very challenging because cancer takes decades to develop so having a randomized control trial with a supplement like magnesium is going to be challenging if not impossible to do so, that's also something to keep in
54:51
mind, but let's dive a little deeper into a meta-analysis that examined both
54:56
dietary and supplemental.
54:59
Intake and their effects on mortality risks. So diet dietary magnesium intake was linked to a significantly lower risk of both all-cause mortality and cancer mortality. So specifically for every additional 100 milligrams per day of dietary magnesium. There was a 6% reduction in all cause mortality
55:20
and a five percent
55:21
reduction in cancer mortality. And again, this was in a dose-dependent manner so for each 100 mg increase per day, that was you
55:28
Those reductions
55:31
so I do want to point out that this
55:33
was from dietary sources and not from supplemental sources. So it really could could be that. There's just a barrage of things going on because you're talking about getting magnesium from you know sources of healthy foods. So
55:48
what I'm trying to say is because foods that are high
55:50
in magnesium, like leafy greens,
55:53
they come with a they're packed with the plethora of other vital
55:56
micronutrients and phytonutrients.
55:59
These components collectively contribute to overall health. There are also a part of a food Matrix that enhances their benefits
56:06
the analysis also looked at
56:07
supplemental magnesium intake
56:09
and here's where things get intriguing the supplemental magnesium intake showed a
56:13
nonsignificant positive association with cancer mortality risk based on three studies. It's
56:20
important to note that nonsignificant
56:22
doesn't mean that there was no
56:24
effect. In fact the
56:26
p-value that's used to determine
56:28
Determine significance can actually be quite arbitrary but that's a whole other tangent. But
56:34
I do think it highlights the
56:35
complexity of interpreting data. Similarly. There was a
56:37
total magnesium intake which looked at both dietary
56:41
and supplemental sources
56:42
and that
56:44
really didn't show any significant association with cancer mortality or
56:48
all-cause mortality, but there was a lot of what's
56:51
called heterogeneity between studies in other words. Some studies did see an effect other studies saw no effect. And so again it comes down.
56:59
To that mixed mixed
57:00
data
57:02
really those sorts of things those sorts of differences come down to you know differences in study design population other factors that can just add all these layers of complexity to our
57:11
understanding. I think these findings reinforce the idea that getting
57:15
magnesium from dietary sources might be the most beneficial approach. They also underscore the Nuance nature of nutritional research write the variation in these studies the arbitrary nature of statistical significance the heterogeneity between studies they
57:28
All really point to this careful interpretation a deeper understanding of how nutrients like magnesium are impacting our health and again to
57:37
how
57:38
trials and nutrition and just how complex trials and nutrition are and you know the need to sort of standardize some of these trials as well so that we can get better
57:48
data. I do want to shift gears and talk a little bit about
57:51
osteoporosis. So magnesium also plays a role in bone
57:55
health. We already
57:56
discussed how roughly 60% of the
57:58
Bodies magnesium is stored in the bones. It serves as a reservoir during times when you need magnesium your body will pull it from your bones to to get that source of magnesium
58:09
as a person
58:11
ages magnesium losses from the bones increase and this is partly because the body strives to maintain a very narrow stable range of magnesium in the plasma
58:21
when our dietary intake is insufficient
58:24
the body compensates again by pulling magnesium from the bones, which is
58:28
is a reservoir. I know I'm being repetitive here, but it's important to understand that just like the muscle is a reservoir for
58:35
amino acids are body pulls amino acids out of muscle
58:40
when we need to get when we need amino acids, and when we're low on protein, which is not a good thing because then you end up losing muscle mass while the
58:47
same concept here. Your body is pulling magnesium from your
58:50
bones. That's a reservoir for magnesium, but pulling from the bones,
58:55
especially when you're talking about over a Lifetime right you're talking about
58:58
In older adult this can contribute to a decrease in a very large decrease in bone magnesium content. In
59:05
fact over a lifetime nearly half of
59:08
the Magnesium content of bone is lost in people
59:12
and and there's some evidence that suggests that
59:15
this magnesium loss in the bones over decades contributes to osteoporosis.
59:21
So adequate magnesium intake early in life really honestly is like an
59:26
investment in your long-term bone health
59:28
Right because
59:30
if you are getting enough magnesium
59:32
from your diet and supplemental sources, your body's not going to have to pull on the Magnesium from your bones to get it what it needs.
59:41
So Studies have shown that magnesium Rich diets
59:43
in pre-adolescents positively positively affect bone density in young adulthood particularly in the heel bone. There's
59:52
been a year-long magnesium supplementation
59:55
study that found that magnesium
59:58
Limitation for one year can enhance bone mass in the hips of Perry pupil pupil girls
1:00:06
and I think this highlights
1:00:07
again magnesium is crucial role Beyond just calcium in building strong bones and preventing osteoporosis. A lot of people think about the role of calcium also very important for bone
1:00:18
health by getting enough magnesium early in life is I think really important so I'm not talking about
1:00:26
supplementing with magnesium later in life.
1:00:28
Life when you already have osteoporosis, I'm talking about preventing your body from pulling that magnesium out of your bones so that you don't you do not going to get much so that you lower your risk of osteoporosis later in life. So, you know magnesium is important for ensuring stronger bones as you age and I think again think of it as an investment strategy earlier in life. You're going to make make sure that your body is not going to pull that magnesium from your bones year after year after year after decade after decade.
1:00:58
Cade eventually depleting, you know, 40% of your your body's bones, you know reservoir of magnesium,
1:01:06
I think on a very similar note, let's get into vitamin d and vitamin D metabolism
1:01:13
vitamin D also plays a role in bone
1:01:14
health, but I think even
1:01:16
more important here is the role magnesium plays in vitamin D metabolism. So it's just another layer of you know, a
1:01:25
connection that magnesium has to our
1:01:28
on health
1:01:29
because we know vitamin D plays a role in bone health as well.
1:01:33
So vitamin D
1:01:34
is important for calcium absorption and bone health magnesium
1:01:38
by acting as a cofactor for several enzymes that
1:01:41
metabolize vitamin D. Then helps make sure that we're getting
1:01:46
vitamin D and using it effectively magnesium
1:01:50
directly contributes to bone density because it's it makes up the bone, right so it but it also plays an important role in bone health indirectly.
1:01:58
By contributing to vitamin D metabolism, which is a key player in bone health. So the Synergy between magnesium and vitamin D metabolism. I think is a perfect example of how interconnected our nutrient intake is with, you know, overall bodily functions and how some of these micronutrients are sort of working together and synergizing and why some trials where you're just giving one micronutrient may not be enough because another one is needed because they work in
1:02:27
concert. So let's
1:02:28
is this a little bit high intake of magnesium whether from the diet or supplements or both
1:02:34
is linked to a lower risk of having low levels of vitamin D. There's also a notable interaction between magnesium and vitamin D intakes that influence the risk of vitamin D deficiency and insufficiency.
1:02:48
So what do I mean for example, if a person's magnesium intake is adequate this can enhance the body's ability to maintain healthy levels of vitamin D.
1:02:58
On the other hand if magnesium intake is
1:03:02
low like 45 percent or half the population roughly of the u.s.
1:03:07
That may hinder the body's ability to utilize vitamin D effectively, even if vitamin D intake is sufficient. So this study found that the benefits of having higher vitamin D levels in reducing the risk of death, especially from cardiovascular disease and colorectal cancer were more significant in
1:03:28
Jules that had above average intake of magnesium building on the insights of those observational studies. I just mentioned a randomized controlled trial help shed further light on how magnesium
1:03:40
supplementation influences vitamin D
1:03:42
status. So magnesium is
1:03:44
key for enzymes that convert vitamin D3 into
1:03:47
25 hydroxy
1:03:48
vitamin D, which is the main circulating form of vitamin D in our bodies. It's what we typically measure on a vitamin D blood test.
1:03:55
So this trial showed that for people with
1:03:58
Low, 25 hydroxy vitamin D levels, which usually
1:04:01
can indicate vitamin D deficiency
1:04:04
magnesium supplementation
1:04:06
effectively increase these levels. It appears
1:04:09
that magnesium is aiding in the conversion of vitamin
1:04:12
D3 into this more stable form of vitamin D, which is 25 hydroxy vitamin D.
1:04:18
So what this tells us is that magnesium's influence on vitamin D status is not a one-size-fits-all. It really varies based on your
1:04:28
Existing vitamin D levels.
1:04:31
It's playing a critical role in either helping stabilize vitamin D in the body converting that vitamin D3 into that active that that stable circulating form or it's also activating that stir that circulating
1:04:46
stabilized form 25 docs you vitamin D into the act of steroid hormone, depending on your individual
1:04:52
needs. I think this study really I like this study. It offers a deeper
1:04:57
understanding of
1:04:58
Like the intricate relationship between magnesium and vitamin D. They're both crucial micronutrients. Although vitamin D actually functions as a steroid hormone in the body,
1:05:07
but it also adds layers of complication to randomized controlled trials using vitamin D and perhaps there's a
1:05:15
negative result where you're
1:05:16
getting no effect after giving a vitamin D supplement. Well if half the u.s. Population is not getting enough magnesium and magnesium is required to make vitamin D.
1:05:28
Shin as an act of steroid hormone, then you're going to have a problem those trials. Are there going to be flawed at the get-go? And again it just it highlights the important role of thinking
1:05:40
about nutrition differently than pharmaceutical drug trials.
1:05:45
We have to think about not only the varying levels and different levels people
1:05:49
have of these nutrients at the start of the
1:05:52
trial but how these nutrients are interacting with each other and if a deficiency in one is going to
1:05:58
affect the function of another then giving that supplement of the other isn't going to do much if you're still deficient and the
1:06:05
important micro nutrient that is needed to make that other one properly
1:06:09
function. So again, I just I just want you guys to understand why nutritional trials are so complicated and why they're so much
1:06:20
mixed data out there. It's just it's incredibly hard to design the trial properly and to think of all these things
1:06:28
And to get enough funding to do them as well. So lots
1:06:32
of things to keep in mind when it comes to interpreting the results of a trial. Okay, let's shift
1:06:37
gears and talk now about blood pressure
1:06:40
hypertension the role of magnesium in lowering blood
1:06:44
pressure. So hypertension or high blood pressure. It's
1:06:48
actually a pretty prevalent issue. So it affects nearly half of us adults including twenty percent of young adults aged 18 to 39, which wow,
1:06:58
it's kind of important twenty percent of young adults aged 18 to 39 have
1:07:02
hypertension. It's it's really crucial
1:07:05
for people those young adults people in their 20s and 30s to be aware of their blood pressure
1:07:11
elevated blood blood pressure is not
1:07:12
only going to increase the risk of cardiovascular diseases, but it also significantly raises the risk of dementia later in life.
1:07:22
And what's the most important factor for that is
1:07:24
the cumulative exposure to high blood pressure. So the earlier
1:07:28
Life you get high blood pressure, the more the risk
1:07:31
you have of dementia later in life. And this is because sustained high blood pressure can lead to damage in the small vessels of the brain and that impairs cognitive functions and potentially leads to conditions like dementia as a person ages.
1:07:45
So monitoring and managing blood pressure from a young age. I think is
1:07:48
a really important and can be crucial for mitigating these dementia risk is cardiovascular disease
1:07:54
risk. So where does magnesium come into this while magnesium helps control?
1:07:58
Low blood pressure by boosting the production of substances like process cyclin and nitric oxide which relax blood vessels and improve overall cardiovascular health
1:08:09
it also AIDS in the widening of blood vessels
1:08:12
which reduces blood pressure so vasodilation. It makes it easier for the heart to pump
1:08:17
blood also magnesium's ability to fight inflammation and protect against damage
1:08:23
to blood vessels also is another way that it can support cardiovascular
1:08:27
health and I
1:08:28
This shows, you know, there's a lot of
1:08:30
different ways that magnesium plays a vital role in helping maintain and keep the cardiovascular system healthy.
1:08:38
So there was a comprehensive meta
1:08:40
analysis involving 34 different randomized controlled trials. There was over 2,000 participants and researchers
1:08:47
discovered that magnesium
1:08:49
supplementation at an average dose of 368 mg per day notably lowers both systolic and diastolic blood.
1:08:58
Pressures this effect which is slightly influenced by the dose and duration of magnesium. I think
1:09:05
does underscore the potential for magnesium to play a role in blood pressure management, perhaps in some people
1:09:12
there are laboratory studies that also back this up that have
1:09:15
found magnesium ability magnesium's ability to adjust vascular smooth muscle function. It can reduce back vascular resistance. It can combat hypertension prevent vasoconstriction.
1:09:28
Also, it's been shown to have antioxidant properties in the vascular system. I think all these things help mitigate vascular damage caused by oxidative stress and other factors as well. And I think
1:09:40
this latest research including a comprehensive meta-analysis really does a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials really does highlight that magnesium may
1:09:51
could play a role in help managing blood pressure effectively in some
1:09:54
people also integrating, you know
1:09:57
magnesium rich foods.
1:09:58
To the diet also is an important way as well and there's been a lot of studies out there showing
1:10:03
things like a dash diet which are
1:10:05
which include a lot of foods that are rich in magnesium is another great way to manage hypertension or high blood pressure as
1:10:11
well. So let's move on to an area that has really I would say
1:10:17
garnered significant interest and that is the effect of magnesium supplementation for the prevention and treatment of muscle cramps.
1:10:26
This Interest really I think stems from magnesium's role in muscle function. It's essential for muscle contractions relaxation deficiencies in magnesium could potentially lead to increased muscle excitability and cramps making supplementation in area of interest for those with low magnesium levels or those prone to muscle cramps such as athletes or elderly individuals or those with certain medical conditions. However, when we look at the data surrounding,
1:10:56
Magnesium supplementation and its effect on muscle cramps.
1:11:00
It's really a mixed bag
1:11:02
some studies suggest benefits, especially in pregnant women, but the broader
1:11:06
picture is a little more complex. I think this complexity likely stems from the fact that not all studies check
1:11:14
if participants were, you know deficient in magnesium or had insufficient magnesium at the start of the trial as we've already
1:11:22
discussed also another layer of complexity.
1:11:25
She is the fact that
1:11:26
muscle cramps have a diverse, you know array of causes so not are all related to magnesium
1:11:32
levels. So considering only about half the u.s. Population might actually have a low magnesium intake supplementation would only affect perhaps the half of the
1:11:44
pop, you know population. That would not be getting enough magnesium.
1:11:47
And so you might you might
1:11:52
expect that there would be some mixed data with respect to some of these trials.
1:11:55
Based on on those
1:11:57
facts, I would say overall the data is
1:12:00
not very strong supporting magnesium supplementation
1:12:04
and its effect on it and its
1:12:06
effects on reducing muscle
1:12:07
cramps, but that doesn't mean that it doesn't have any effect again. Like I've been
1:12:12
really sort of trying to drive home throughout
1:12:14
this podcast is that the
1:12:16
nutritional trials in you know, nutrition micronutrient things like
1:12:21
magnesium are flawed at the get-go and so in a way
1:12:25
Way, you're almost setting you're almost setting yourself up for failure. And when you actually get a positive result in my opinion, it's kind of like almost just amazing because of all the hurdles that need to
1:12:36
be overcome with respect to designing randomized control trials in nutrition the
1:12:41
other area that I think with respect to muscle cramps and magnesium
1:12:44
that's got a lot of interest is the Epson salt baths and we talked a little bit about this earlier in the podcast. And and this is where I think we really go into scientifically unchartered Waters.
1:12:56
There's a debate on whether whether or not magnesium so magnesium from Epsom salt is in the form of magnesium
1:13:04
sulfate and there's there's a debate on whether or
1:13:07
not the skin can effectively absorb magnesium and sulfates from these kinds of Bath's to influence muscle and tissue health.
1:13:16
I would say there are some studies that suggest the
1:13:18
pathway for magnesium penetration
1:13:21
via the sweat glands and hair follicles.
1:13:25
They're representing.
1:13:25
A very small fraction of the Skins overall surface area.
1:13:29
So the clinical
1:13:30
significance of absorption remains a question not to mention that there's never been any indication that epson salt soaking in Epsom salts can actually increase
1:13:41
any plasma
1:13:42
magnesium levels. Like that's I have not seen that study showing that
1:13:46
there are I would say there have at least been some studies showing that Epsom salt particularly dead sea salt also dead sea salt is
1:13:56
High in magnesium it
1:13:58
can improve Skin Barrier
1:14:00
function and anhydrite hydration as well. But
1:14:04
with respect to muscle cramping, 's you know, I would say that there's no real scientific validation that epson salts or going to improve muscle cramps.
1:14:13
Nonetheless. I would say that you know, ultimately if you find relaxation and a sense of
1:14:19
well-being by taking an Epsom salt bath as I do then you
1:14:24
should continue to do that because
1:14:25
Was at the end of the day
1:14:27
that's what's most
1:14:28
important as we wrap up today's deep dive into the world of magnesium and its Myriad of roles in health and disease prevention. I think it's clear that magnesium holds a pivotal place in the
1:14:37
intersection of Neuroscience physical Health and
1:14:40
Longevity magnesium's
1:14:42
contribution extends far beyond its role in muscle function
1:14:45
and bone health. It's touching on crucial aspects of metabolic Health
1:14:48
cardiovascular function and even cognitive processes
1:14:51
for individuals aiming for longevity and Peak Performance, I think.
1:14:56
Standing this subtleties of magnesium's effects particularly in the context of dietary
1:15:00
intake
1:15:01
potential supplementation is important
1:15:04
the evidence suggests that a tailored approach
1:15:06
recognizing that while some may benefit significantly from increased magnesium others particularly those with
1:15:13
already sufficient levels may not see
1:15:16
much of a factor improvement with increased magnesium intake or
1:15:19
supplementation and this really highlights
1:15:21
the importance of a sort of personalized data driven approach to nutrition.
1:15:25
Mission one that considers individual health statuses and
1:15:28
goals. So that brings us to the end of today's
1:15:32
discussion friends. I really appreciate your tuning in and sharing this deep dive into the fascinating realm of magnesium and its pivotal role in evidence-based nutrition. Thank you for your curiosity and commitment to understanding how this essential mineral influences our health.
1:15:48
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