Knowledge is key to making empowered decisions about your health. We’re dedicated to making your health a priority by keeping you informed on how to achieve your optimal well-being. This month, we discuss how not having enough magnesium can impact the function of all our biological systems.
What is Magnesium?
Magnesium is an essential nutrient that the body requires to maintain overall health and well-being. The human body should contain approximately 25 grams of magnesium, making it the fourth most abundant mineral in the human body. It is primarily found in bones (about 50-60%), and the remainder is found in muscles and soft tissues, leaving less than 1% of total magnesium in the blood serum.
Unfortunately, 1 in 5 people are experiencing full blown magnesium deficiency while up to 80% of the population is suffering from subclinical, or insufficient, levels of magnesium. An estimated 25% of children are also presenting with deficiency.
Why is this so important?
Unlike medications that target a certain pathway to impact a particular physiological function in the body, magnesium (like most vitamins and minerals by the way), is necessary for hundreds of pathways in the human body.
Magnesium serves as a cofactor for over 300 enzymatic reactions that regulate diverse functions in the body, impacting every single one of our biological systems. We require this mineral for energy production, blood sugar control, oxidative phosphorylation, muscle & nerve function, bone health, protein synthesis, hormone regulation, digestion, brain function, and more…
This is why low levels of the mineral can cause symptoms that are seemingly all over the place. Symptomatic insufficiency or deficiency can contribute to issues including chronic pain, headaches or migraines, sleep issues, high blood pressure, blood sugar issues, muscle twitching, cramping, or spasming, tremors, PMS, menstrual cramps, vertigo, anxiety, depression, cognitive decline, tinnitus (ear ringing), sensitivity to loud noises, hearing loss, constipation, acid reflux, loss of appetite, nausea or vomiting, immune dysfunction, osteopenia — the list goes on….
More severe cases of deficiency have been associated with conditions including hypocalcemia (low calcium), hypokalemia (low potassium), malabsorption syndromes (such as Crohn’s disease, ulcerative colitis, celiac disease, etc.), heart disease, metabolic diseases (such as type-2 diabetes or hypothyroidism), neurological disorders, seizures, pre-term labor, and osteoporosis.
Dietary surveys conducted in the United States consistently show a significant portion of the population consumes less than the recommended amounts of magnesium. A whopping 75% of Americans are not getting enough magnesium in their diet.
The reason for this is a combination of the dramatic decline of magnesium content in our foods, as a result of nutrient depletion in the soil, and the Standard American Diet which is high in ultra-processed foods, starch and sugar, all of which deplete magnesium.
Consumption of alcohol, caffeine, and certain medications can also play a role. To name a few, acid blocking drugs (PPI’s), diuretics, calcium channel blockers, beta-blockers, antibiotics, steroids, chemotherapy drugs, and calcineurin inhibitors are all medications that can impact magnesium status.
Recommended Intake
The Recommended Dietary Allowance (RDA) for magnesium varies by age, sex, and life stage. For adult (ages 19-30) women, the RDA is 310–320 mg/day, while for adult men, it is 400–420 mg/day.
The established RDA for children varies mostly with age and not as much by gender, recommending: 30 mg/day from birth to 6 months, 75 mg/day from 7-12 months, 80 mg/day for ages 1-3, 130 mg/day for ages 4-8, and 240 mg/day for ages 9-13. For ages 14-18, boys should aim for 410 mg/day, while girls require a bit less, at 360 mg/day.
The RDA is determined by the Food and Nutrition Board (FNB), which assesses the amount needed to meet the nutritional requirements of 97–98% of healthy individuals based on available research. However, these values are set to prevent deficiency related disease and do not take into consideration other factors such as existing chronic health issues or challenges like stress, pain, poor sleep, and more, that would yield consideration for higher nutrient needs.
Dietary Sources of Magnesium
Magnesium is widely distributed in plant and animal foods such as beef, poultry, fish (i.e. salmon, halibut, mackerel), green leafy vegetables (i.e. spinach, swiss chard, collard greens, turnip greens, mustard greens), carrots, broccoli, legumes (i.e. lentils, black or kidney beans, chickpeas, edamame), nuts (almonds, cashews, peanuts or nut butters) & seeds (flaxseeds, chia seeds, pumpkin seeds), whole grains, white potatoes (with the skin), oatmeal, white or brown rice, yogurt, seaweed, avocados, raisins, apples, bananas and even dark chocolate (70% cacao or greater).
Magnesium in Our Practice:
At the TMJ & Sleep Therapy Centre of Cleveland, we specialize in treating craniofacial pain [pain in the head, face, jaw, and neck] and sleep-related breathing disorders [snoring, adult & pediatric OSA, UARS].
In our office, we recognize that magnesium is a powerhouse mineral—especially when it comes to its relaxation benefits, making it very beneficial for the variety of conditions we treat, such as TMJ issues, neck pain, migraine headaches, and sleep disorders. Deficiency and insufficiency is also common in those who suffer from chronic pain and poor sleep.
Through regulating muscle and nerve relaxation, and reducing inflammation, it can help reduce many types of pain. The mineral also interacts with the NMDA receptors in the nervous system, dulling the signals from sensory neurons to the brain and reducing the sensation of pain.
The hype around magnesium in our office isn’t just for pain relief — it also plays a pivotal role in sleep. Magnesium increases GABA, a neurotransmitter known as the “brakes of the brain,” slowing down nerve activity and helping the mind and body transition out of an active state and into the “rest and digest” parasympathetic state, while also decreasing cortisol and supporting melatonin production.
These benefits can help to improve how quickly you fall asleep, reduce how many times you wake in the night, and allow you to wake in the morning feeling more rested. Its calming effects extend to your muscles in the airway, which can improve breathing during sleep and help to mitigate parafunctional activity (i.e. teeth grinding/clenching).
Testing Your Magnesium Levels
Standard medicine protocols typically test for serum (blood) levels of magnesium. While this test can be useful to depict true deficiency of the mineral, this is arguably not the best representation of how much magnesium you have throughout your body.
Alternatively, there is red blood cell (RBC) magnesium testing. RBC magnesium is more reflective of intracellular magnesium and mineral status in the bones and tissues. This makes RBC testing helpful in determining if you are experiencing insufficiency, which correlates with clinic symptoms. Identifying insufficiency is also useful for preventing the progression to deficiency. In order to comprehensively evaluate your levels, more than one laboratory test might be recommended.
Magnesium Supplements
Supplements are available in a variety of forms, but the absorption and benefit from different kinds of magnesium supplements vary. Citrate and glycinate are the two most commonly utilized forms of magnesium in our office.
Citrate is highly bioavailable and effective in preventing and resolving deficiency. This form is a mild laxative and is very useful in treating constipation, but not suitable for those with looser stools or certain types of irritable bowel.
Glycinate is comparable in bioavailability to citrate and is known for its calming effects, relaxing the muscles and nervous system. It is suitable for sleep support, anxiety, stress, and pain. This form has been shown to be one of the safest options for correcting long-term deficiency.
Other effective forms of magnesium include malate, L-threonate, taurate, and chloride.
Carbonate, oxide, sulfate, and glutamate are not recommended due to their low bioavailability.
*If you are considering supplementing, it is recommended to work with a trusted health care practitioner to ensure you are taking a safe supplement that is the best form and dosage for your individual needs.
How We Can Help:
If you are struggling with chronic pain, sleep issues, or other magnesium insufficiency or deficiency related symptoms, reach out to our office to schedule a comprehensive evaluation to get you one step closer to achieving better health.
Additional Resources:
- https://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/Magnesium-HealthProfessional/
- https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34883514
- https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37954114/
- https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24206074/
- https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC1855626/
- https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9496273/
- https://bpspubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/prp2.829