Health and Longevity
What Happens If We Don’t Get Enough Magnesium?
I explain consequences based on scientific research and my significant experience and provide practical tips to address them.
Introduction and Context
Simply put, you might die earlier than usual if you don’t consume sufficient magnesium for a long time, as it plays a role in fixing DNA damage.
I made a convincing statement to attract your attention, but my aim is not to scare you but instead to provide insights from scientific resources on the importance of magnesium without boring you.
Magnesium plays many crucial roles in our health. For example, we need magnesium for reproduction, protein synthesis, the regulation of muscular contraction, blood pressure, insulin metabolism, cardiac excitability, energy production (ATP) metabolism, DNA repair, neuromuscular conduction, vasomotor tone, and nerve transmission.
As highlighted in a scientific review titled The Importance of Magnesium in Clinical Healthcare, emerging evidence confirms that nearly two-thirds of the population in the western world is not achieving the recommended daily allowance for magnesium, a deficiency problem contributing to various health conditions.
Men, women, and children need different amounts of magnesium. If you are a man, you need at least 400 mg, and if you are a woman, you need 310 mg of magnesium. Here is the recommended daily allowance for magnesium covering life stages provided by National Institutes for Health (NIH):
Magnesium deficiency can produce various symptoms, such as nausea, loss of appetite, vomiting, fatigue, lethargy, tingling, muscle cramps, numbness, seizures, an abnormal heart rhythm, and even personality changes.
A Condensed Review of Scientific Literature
Why is magnesium so important for our health?
There are hundreds of papers reporting the research results of magnesium’s impact and implications.
Over the years, I reviewed many papers, but to keep this article in a reasonable size, I selected a few representative ones to give you a high-level perspective on this essential nutrient.
To increase readability, I presented them under ten categories.
1 — Overall benefits
As pointed out in this study, “magnesium has been recognized as a co-factor for more than 300 enzymatic reactions, where it is crucial for adenosine triphosphate (ATP) metabolism. Magnesium is required for DNA and RNA synthesis, reproduction, and protein synthesis. Moreover, magnesium is essential for the regulation of muscular contraction, blood pressure, insulin metabolism, cardiac excitability, vasomotor tone, nerve transmission, and neuromuscular conduction.”
2 — Cardiovascular Diseases
Magnesium is critical for our hearts. This study confirms that:
“In the heart, magnesium plays a key role in modulating neuronal excitation, intracardiac conduction, and myocardial contraction by regulating a number of ion transporters, including potassium and calcium channels. Magnesium also has a role in regulating vascular tone, atherogenesis and thrombosis, vascular calcification, and proliferation and migration of endothelial and vascular smooth muscle cells. As such, magnesium potentially has a major influence on the pathogenesis of the cardiovascular disease.”
This research paper highlights the criticality of magnesium for health conditions.
“Experimental and clinical studies have demonstrated that magnesium deficiency leads to hypertension, insulin resistance, and endothelial dysfunction and is associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular events. Given that cardiovascular disease and [Chronic Kidney Disease] share similar risk factors, the low magnesium status may also contribute to CKD progression. Lower serum magnesium levels and lower dietary magnesium intake are associated with an increased risk of incident CKD and progression to end-stage kidney disease.”
This study titled [Magnesium and sudden death] scared me.
It mentions that “magnesium deficiency may result from reduced dietary intake of the ion or increased losses in sweat, urine or feces. Stress potentiates magnesium deficiency, and an increased incidence of sudden death associated with ischaemic heart disease is found in some areas in which soil and drinking water lack magnesium. Furthermore, it has been demonstrated experimentally that reduction of the plasma magnesium level is associated with arterial spasm.”
Hypertension, insulin resistance, and cardiovascular diseases are also symptoms of metabolic syndrome and obesity, as I pointed out in this article: Fix Metabolic Syndrome, Live a Longer and Healthier Life: Metabolic inflexibility underlies major health issues.
3 — Insomnia and Sleep Deprivation
Magnesium is closely related to sleep quality. I used it as part of my sleep studies and self-improvement experiments, as explained in an article. I stressed it as the number one sleep hack in my book. This article is a chapter of my book available for readers of this platform: Powerful Life-Changing Hacks That Truly Transformed My Life: Chapter 5: Smart Sleep Habits.
To back up this perspective, I found a study highlighting the benefits of magnesium for sleep. The study reveals that “in clinical trials, dietary magnesium use can improve insomnia symptoms. However, little is known about the association between dietary magnesium consumption and sleep disorder symptoms, including daytime falling asleep, sleepiness, and snoring at the population level.” More studies in this area can give us better perspectives.
However, another study shed light on the association between magnesium deficiency for disrupted sleep and sleep deprivation. According to this paper, “Low magnesium status has been associated with numerous conditions characterized as having a chronic inflammatory stress component. Some animal findings indicate that a moderate magnesium deficiency, similar to which apparently commonly occurs in humans, may enhance inflammatory or oxidative stress induced by other factors, including disrupted sleep/sleep deprivation.”
4 — Depression
I discussed anhedonia as a symptom of depression in this article. There is also some evidence that magnesium can contribute to reducing depression symptoms and treatment.
For example, this paper mentions that:
“mechanisms of antidepressant action of magnesium are not fully understood yet. Most probably, magnesium influences several systems associated with the development of depression. The first information on the beneficial effect of magnesium sulfate given hypodermically to patients with agitated depression was published almost 100 years ago. Numerous pre-clinical and clinical studies confirmed the initial observations as well as demonstrated the beneficial safety profile of magnesium supplementation. Thus, magnesium preparations seem to be a valuable addition to the pharmacological armamentarium for management of depression.”
Another study points out:
“Depression is a common and often disabling disorder. Magnesium supplementation has been linked to improvement in depressive symptoms, but consensus on the relationship between magnesium and depression has not been reached. We found a significant association between very low magnesium intake and depression, especially in younger adults. The finding of the potential protective effect of low magnesium intake in older adults is surprising and warrants further investigation.”
5 — Diabetes and Insulin Resistance
As a person who suffered from metabolic conditions in the past, almost in the onset of diabetes, I found research into diabetes concerning magnesium. 12 Entangled Health Conditions I Owned & Fixed By Myself: How I transformed my problematic health and fitness situations by methodical trials & errors.
This meta-analysis confirms: that “emerging epidemiological evidence suggests that higher magnesium intake may reduce diabetes incidence. We aimed to examine the association between magnesium intake and risk of type 2 diabetes by conducting a meta-analysis of prospective cohort studies. This meta-analysis provides further evidence supporting that magnesium intake is significantly inversely associated with risk of type 2 diabetes in a dose-response manner.”
Moreover, a study titled Higher magnesium intake reduces risk of impaired glucose and insulin metabolism and progression from prediabetes to diabetes in middle-aged americans concludes that “Magnesium intake may be particularly beneficial in offsetting risk of developing diabetes among those at high risk. Magnesium’s long-term associations with non-steady-state (dynamic) measures deserve further research.”
6 — Chronic Inflammation
Chronic inflammation is very close to my heart as it causes havoc in my life. Living with an inflammatory condition is not fun. How I Dealt With Chronic Inflammation: A personal transformation story.
When I read this paper in 2014, it gave me valuable insights on using magnesium to further reduce my inflammation.
It mentions that “subclinical magnesium deficiency caused by low dietary intake often occurring in the population is a predisposing factor for chronic inflammatory stress conducive to chronic disease. Magnesium deficiency should be considered a nutrient of significant concern for health and well-being.”
7 — Hypokalemia
This paper mentions an interesting condition that I have no experience.
“Magnesium deficiency is frequently associated with hypokalemia. Concomitant magnesium deficiency aggravates hypokalemia and renders it refractory to treatment by potassium.” According to the National Organization for Rare Diseases, hypokalemia is a metabolic imbalance characterized by extremely low potassium levels in the blood. It is a symptom of another disease or condition or a side effect of diuretic drugs.”
8 — The smooth muscle tissue of the uterus
This study points out that “magnesium is involved in a wide variety of physiological processes including direct relaxation of smooth muscle.
The study mentions that a magnesium imbalance can be considered the primary cause or consequence of many pathophysiological conditions. The smooth muscle tissue of the uterus, i.e., the myometrium, undergoes numerous physiological changes during life, fundamental for uterine activities, and it receives proven benefits from magnesium supplementation. However, magnesium supplements have poor absorption and bioavailability.”
9 — Bioavailability Concerns
As the study highlights, magnesium supplements have poor bioavailability. The excessive supplement even causes stomach upsets, per my experience.
I researched the topic deeply as part of my life-hacks books and found out that the best way of getting enough magnesium is through the skin.
I shared my experience in this story: Epsom Salts: An Incredible Substance for Immunity: Healing power of magnesium sulphate based on experience.
10 — Other conditions
There are hundreds of studies related therapeutic effects of magnesium for migraines, constipation, and muscle health. I also read many testimonials in health forms. However, due to the scope of this article, I omitted them. So instead, I link this article as a reference, covering some of these issues.
Overconsumption of Magnesium
However, too much of anything in life can be problematic, as I mentioned in my story related to the side effects of running. So, excessive magnesium consumption, especially for those who have magnesium digestion issues, can face hypermagnesemia. I shared my findings related to excessive magnesium in this article.
From my experience, hypermagnesemia is a rare condition for healthy adults. For example, I increased my magnesium intake to a gram day in addition to having it through my skin using Epsom Salts, and my blood markers did not show any indication of this condition.
My experience is not a recommendation. I only provide this information to reflect my personal findings. We are all unique and have different requirements. Please consult with your healthcare professional for an optimal dose of magnesium for your needs.
Conclusions
It is important to note that, as confirmed by National Institutes for Health (NIH), “Magnesium is a co-factor in more than 300 enzyme systems that regulate diverse biochemical reactions in the body, including protein synthesis, muscle and nerve function, blood glucose control, and blood pressure regulation”.
Magnesium is crucial for many biological functions such as adenosine triphosphate (ATP) metabolism, reproduction, protein synthesis, the regulation of muscular contraction, blood pressure, cardiac excitability, insulin metabolism, DNA/RNA synthesis, vasomotor tone, neuromuscular conduction, and nerve transmission.
Magnesium is essential for survival but also crucial for thriving. It is great for survival; however, for me, the most exciting aspect of magnesium is DNA repair, promising for longevity.
Mainly plant foods provide enough magnesium. However, people who consume less or no plant foods can consider supplementing with magnesium.
However, the supplement's bioavailability and digestive issues can require alternative ingestion methods. From my experience, the safest and most effective way of getting adequate magnesium is through the skin.
When I learned the importance of magnesium and fixed my deficiency, I experienced substantial improvement in my health. The most beneficial aspects were improving sleep quality, reducing inflammation, and eliminating muscle discomfort, especially after intense exercise.
After consuming an adequate amount of magnesium, I experience an overall improvement in my health and fitness.
Thank you for reading my reviews, experience, and perspectives on magnesium. I’d be delighted to obtain your feedback.
Here is my new review summarizing various forms of magnesium.
Besides aiming to increase the hormonal intelligence of my readers and writing about neurotransmitters such as dopamine, serotonin, oxytocin, GABA, acetylcholine, and norepinephrine, one of my goals as a writer is to raise awareness about the causes and risk factors of prevalent diseases that can lead to suffering and death for a large portion of the population.
I aim to educate, create awareness, and empower my readers to take control of their health and well-being.
To raise awareness about health issues, I have written several articles that present my holistic health findings from research, personal observations, and unique experiences. Below are links to these articles for easy access.
Metabolic Syndrome, Type II Diabetes, Fatty Liver Disease, Heart Disease, Strokes, Obesity, Liver Cancer, Autoimmune Disorders, Homocysteine, Lungs Health, Pancreas Health, Kidneys Health, NCDs, Infectious Diseases, Brain Health, Dementia, Depression, Brain Atrophy, Neonatal Disorders, Skin Health, Dental Health, Bone Health, Leaky Gut, Leaky Brain, Brain Fog, Chronic Inflammation, Insulin Resistance, Elevated Cortisol, Leptin Resistance, Anabolic Resistance, Cholesterol, High Triglycerides, Metabolic Disorders, Gastrointestinal Disorders, and Major Diseases.
I also wrote about valuable nutrients. Here are the links for easy access:
Lutein/Zeaxanthin, Boron, Urolithin, taurine, citrulline malate, biotin, lithium orotate, alpha-lipoic acid, n-acetyl-cysteine, acetyl-l-carnitine, CoQ10, PQQ, NADH, TMG, creatine, choline, digestive enzymes, magnesium, zinc, hydrolyzed collagen, nootropics, pure nicotine, activated charcoal, Vitamin B12, Vitamin B1, Vitamin D, Vitamin K2, Omega-3 Fatty Acids, N-Acetyl L-Tyrosine, and other nutrients to improve metabolism and mental health.
Disclaimer: Please note that my posts do not include professional or health advice. I document my reviews, observations, experience, and perspectives only to provide information and create awareness.
Sample Humorous Stories
Finally, After Burning Her House, Georgia Found Enlightenment
Hilarious Tips to Prevent Brain Atrophy and Keep the Gray Matter Giggling
8 Psychological Points I Had to Unlearn and Relearn the Opposite
Based on my writing experience and observations, I documented findings and strategies that might help you amplify your voice, engage your audience, and achieve your desired outcomes in your writing journey.
I publish my lifestyle, health, and well-being stories on EUPHORIA. My focus is on metabolic, cellular, mitochondrial, and mental health. Here is my collection of Insightful Life Lessons from Personal Stories.
If you enjoy writing and storytelling, you can join Medium, NewsBreak, and Vocal as a creator to find your voice, reach out to a broad audience, and monetize your content.
You may also check my blog posts about my articles and articles of other writers contributing to my publications on Medium. I share them on my website digitalmehmet.com. Here is my professional bio. You can contact me via weblink.
You might join my six publications on Medium as a writer by sending a request via this link. 24K+ writers contribute to my publications. You might find more information about my professional background.
