Magnesium is an important mineral that has many roles in the body including helping with muscle and nerve function, blood pressure regulation, and supporting the immune system. The amount of magnesium in the body is controlled by how much is being absorbed in your intestines from the food you eat and how much magnesium is being removed by the kidneys. Dietary levels, problems with gut absorption and conditions of the kidneys can therefore all lead to either high or low magnesium levels.
I have frequently written about my concerns for the health and welfare of Solomon Islanders prone to Non-Contributable Diseases (NCDs and especially mentioned diabetes and the effect that disease is having on those who have contracted the illness and suffered the loss of a limb through surgery and resultant disability and a lack of mobility and who are still without assistance in getting a prosthetic or artificial limb fitted due to the continuing absence of a Rehabilitation Workshop at the National Referral Hospital (NRH).
My frustrations over this situation I believe are well known and I must hope the MHMS and the NRH administration will soon remedy this concern.
Today, I concern myself more generally by mentioning the bodies essential requirement for magnesium for a variety of important health reasons and especially in supporting one’s immune system, and especially as one needs strong health to ward off any risk of coronavirus.
I did some searching this morning on the subject of magnesium and from what I read (and will share) I just wonder how the average person in the Solomon Islands is getting his or her share of the vital mineral in their diet. I particularly concern myself how the rural population get their requirements for magnesium given their subsistence means of living.
In the West, magnesium is obtained by eating a variety of foods which are often, I suspect not available in the Solomon Islands and, if they are, are reasonably assumed too costly to buy. The exception perhaps is fish and I believe fish still makes up a substantial part of the local diet.
Let me therefore quote the health advice given in the UK’s ‘Net Doctor’ publication and written by Dr. Juliet McGrattan (MBChB). She is an award-winning author and explains more about magnesium; the important role it plays in the body, symptoms of magnesium deficiency and how to ensure you hit your daily quota:
Quote.
Magnesium is an important mineral that has many roles in the body including helping with muscle and nerve function, blood pressure regulation, and supporting the immune system. But according to the World Health Organisation, up to two thirds of the world’s population may not be getting adequate amounts of magnesium in their daily diets.
Magnesium deficiency has been linked to serious medical conditions including osteoporosis, heart disease and type 2 diabetes. The good news is provided you eat the right foods the majority of people can get enough magnesium from their diet without the need for supplements.
What is magnesium?
Magnesium is a metallic element found in every cell in the body. Only one per cent of our magnesium is circulating in our blood stream, the other 99 per cent is tucked away in our bones, muscle and soft tissues.
What does magnesium do in the body?
Magnesium has lots of functions in the body including roles in:
- Energy production
- Ensuring strong bones
- Muscle contraction
- DNA synthesis
- Making protein
- Nerve function and transmission
- Insulin metabolism and controlling blood sugar levels
- Blood pressure regulation
Magnesium doesn’t work alone and is a cofactor to around 350 enzyme systems which means it’s essential for lots of the body’s chemical reactions, including those which turn the food we eat into energy.
Where do you get magnesium?
The amount of magnesium in the body is controlled by how much is being absorbed in your intestines from the food you eat and how much magnesium is being removed by the kidneys. Dietary levels, problems with gut absorption and conditions of the kidneys can therefore all lead to either high or low magnesium levels.
Magnesium is present in a wide variety of foods so it’s easy to get an adequate amount from your diet. Having said that, it’s thought that the changes in our diet over the last 100 years, with an increased reliance on processed food, might be responsible for the reports that two thirds of people in the Western world aren’t eating enough magnesium every day.
Foods that contain magnesium
A balanced, healthy diet full of fresh fruit, vegetables and wholegrains should give you all the magnesium your body needs to function normally.
Here are some of the top magnesium-rich foods to include in your diet:
- Leafy green vegetables including spinach and Swiss chard
- Bananas
- Avocado
- Nuts – almonds, cashews, Brazil nuts
- Seeds – pumpkin, sunflower and flaxseeds
- Beans – black beans, edamame, kidney beans
- Quinoa
- Grains – wholegrains, quinoa and wheat bran
- Fish
- Yoghurt
- Dark chocolate
- Potatoes
How much magnesium do I need?
The recommended daily intake of magnesium for adults varies between countries. In the UK it is 300mg per day for men and 270mg per day for women. In the US, the recommended daily amount is higher, 400-420mg for men and 300-310mg for women.
17 magnesium deficiency signs
Magnesium deficiency where levels are low enough to cause symptoms and medical problems is rare. Not achieving the recommended daily intake and having a below optimal level of magnesium as a result, is common and goes undetected in most people.
Remember that only 1 per cent of magnesium is in the blood. The rest is tied up in bones and other tissues, there’s currently no test that will tell you how much magnesium in total is in your body.
Symptoms from low magnesium are rare but a doctor may decide to test your levels if you are affected by any of the following conditions:
- Osteoporosis – low bone strength.
- Muscle weakness, twitching or cramping.
- Restless leg syndrome.
- Abnormal heart rhythms – also known as cardiac arrhythmias.
- Seizures.
- Confusion.
- Long term diarrhoea for example as part of Crohn’s disease or coeliac disease.
- Uncontrolled diabetes.
- Alcoholism.
- Hypo or hyperparathyroidism – an under or overactive parathyroid gland. This gland regulates the amount of magnesium, calcium and phosphorus in the body.
- Malnutrition.
- Severe burns.
- Pre-eclampsia – a condition with high blood pressure during pregnancy.
- Kidney disease.
- Liver disease.
- Long term use of certain medications including diuretics (‘water tablets’).
- Abnormal calcium or potassium levels which are often associated with abnormal magnesium levels.
The full role of magnesium in the body isn’t yet understood. Many of the research comes from studies done on animals and may not translate to humans. It seems that magnesium may have an anti-inflammatory effect in the body. Long-term inflammation is partly responsible for many major medical conditions and a deficiency of magnesium has been linked to type 2 diabetes, heart disease, high blood pressure, Alzheimer’s disease and migraines.
There are also medical studies which link magnesium to mental health conditions including anxiety and depression, mood swings, sleep and behavioural problems but more research needs to be done to confirm this.
End of quote.
I do hope by sharing the advice on magnesium it will help the people in the Solomon Islands, whenever possible, to change their diets to include magnesium – and fish is a good source – and try to avoid several of the diseases already of concern in the Solomon Islands.
Yours sincerely
Frank Short
