Are You Magnesium Deficient?
According to report by the World Health Organization published in 2006, the majority of the world’s population is magnesium deficient.
Below is a list of symptoms and behaviours that can identify a need for magnesium.
1. Alcohol intake – more than seven drinks per week
2. Anger
3. Angina
4. Anxiety
5. Apathy
6. Arrhythmia of the heart
7. Asthma
8. Blood tests (low calcium/low potassium/low magnesium)
9. Bowel problems (undigested fat in stool / constipation / diarrhoea / alternating constipation and diarrhoea / IBS / crohn’s / colitis)
10. Brain Trauma
11. Bronchitis
12. Caffeine (coffee / tea / chocolate) – more than three servings per day
13. Chronic Fatigue Syndrome
14. Cold extremities (hands and feet)
15. Concentration difficulties
16. Confusion
17. Convulsions
18. Depression
19. Diabetes (type I / type II / gestational diabetes)
20. Fibromyalgia
21. Food intake imbalances (limited intake green leafy vegetables, seeds and fresh fruit / high protein)
22. Food cravings (carbohydrates / chocolate / salt / junk food)
23. Gagging or choking on food
24. Headaches
25. Heart disease
26. Heart- rapid rate
27. High blood pressure
28. Homocysteinuria
29. Hyperventilation
30. Hyperactivity
31. Infertility
32. Insomnia
33. Irritability
34. Kidney stones
35. Medications (digitalis / diuretics / antibiotics / steroids / oral contraceptives / indomethacin / cisplatin / amphotericin b / cholestyramine / synthetic estrogens)
36. Memory impairment
37. Mercury amalgam dental fillings
38. Menstrual pain and cramps
39. Migraines
40. Mineral supplements (calcium without magnesium / zinc without magnesium / iron without magnesium)
41. Mitral valve prolapse
42. Muscle cramps or spasms
43. Muscle twitching or tics
44. Muscle weakness
45. Numbness of hands or feet
46. Osteoporosis
47. Paranoia
48. Parathyroid hyperactivity
49. PMS
50. Polycystic ovarian disease
51. Pregnancy (currently pregnant / pregnant within a year / history of preeclampsia or eclampsia / postpartum depression / have a child with cerebral palsy)
52. Radiation therapy, recent
53. Raynaud’s syndrome
54. Restlessness
55. Sexual energy diminished
56. Shortness of breath
57. Smoking
58. Startled easily by noise
59. Stressful life or circumstances
60. Stroke
61. Sugar, high intake daily
62. Syndrome X
63. Thyroid hyperactivity
64. Tingling of hands or feet
65. Transplants (kidney / liver)
66. Tremor of the hands
67. Water that contains fluoride/chlorine/calcium
68. Wheezing
There have been indications of magnesium deficiency being associated with the following:
i) ADD / ADHD
ii) Auto immune disorders
iii) Skin problems such as eczema and psoriasis
iv) Systematic lupus erythematosus (SLE)
v) Tension
vi) Ulcerative colitis
vii) Osteoarthritis
Generally speaking, you become more deficient the more hectic your life is, the more you expose yourself to stress and the less you take care of your diet. Living in an urban environment does not help either as air; light, noise and water pollution all contribute to you becoming magnesium deficient.
It is not always easy to eliminate or reduce the factors that contribute to magnesium deficiency. You need to earn a living and going through stress is often something that is unavoidable in order to bring home a pay check. Stress is not something a student can tune out during the examination periods. But the ability to deal with stress might be something that can be worked on and Magnesium can play a role in this.
Below is a list of symptoms and behaviours that can identify a need for magnesium.
1. Alcohol intake – more than seven drinks per week
2. Anger
3. Angina
4. Anxiety
5. Apathy
6. Arrhythmia of the heart
7. Asthma
8. Blood tests (low calcium/low potassium/low magnesium)
9. Bowel problems (undigested fat in stool / constipation / diarrhoea / alternating constipation and diarrhoea / IBS / crohn’s / colitis)
10. Brain Trauma
11. Bronchitis
12. Caffeine (coffee / tea / chocolate) – more than three servings per day
13. Chronic Fatigue Syndrome
14. Cold extremities (hands and feet)
15. Concentration difficulties
16. Confusion
17. Convulsions
18. Depression
19. Diabetes (type I / type II / gestational diabetes)
20. Fibromyalgia
21. Food intake imbalances (limited intake green leafy vegetables, seeds and fresh fruit / high protein)
22. Food cravings (carbohydrates / chocolate / salt / junk food)
23. Gagging or choking on food
24. Headaches
25. Heart disease
26. Heart- rapid rate
27. High blood pressure
28. Homocysteinuria
29. Hyperventilation
30. Hyperactivity
31. Infertility
32. Insomnia
33. Irritability
34. Kidney stones
35. Medications (digitalis / diuretics / antibiotics / steroids / oral contraceptives / indomethacin / cisplatin / amphotericin b / cholestyramine / synthetic estrogens)
36. Memory impairment
37. Mercury amalgam dental fillings
38. Menstrual pain and cramps
39. Migraines
40. Mineral supplements (calcium without magnesium / zinc without magnesium / iron without magnesium)
41. Mitral valve prolapse
42. Muscle cramps or spasms
43. Muscle twitching or tics
44. Muscle weakness
45. Numbness of hands or feet
46. Osteoporosis
47. Paranoia
48. Parathyroid hyperactivity
49. PMS
50. Polycystic ovarian disease
51. Pregnancy (currently pregnant / pregnant within a year / history of preeclampsia or eclampsia / postpartum depression / have a child with cerebral palsy)
52. Radiation therapy, recent
53. Raynaud’s syndrome
54. Restlessness
55. Sexual energy diminished
56. Shortness of breath
57. Smoking
58. Startled easily by noise
59. Stressful life or circumstances
60. Stroke
61. Sugar, high intake daily
62. Syndrome X
63. Thyroid hyperactivity
64. Tingling of hands or feet
65. Transplants (kidney / liver)
66. Tremor of the hands
67. Water that contains fluoride/chlorine/calcium
68. Wheezing
There have been indications of magnesium deficiency being associated with the following:
i) ADD / ADHD
ii) Auto immune disorders
iii) Skin problems such as eczema and psoriasis
iv) Systematic lupus erythematosus (SLE)
v) Tension
vi) Ulcerative colitis
vii) Osteoarthritis
Generally speaking, you become more deficient the more hectic your life is, the more you expose yourself to stress and the less you take care of your diet. Living in an urban environment does not help either as air; light, noise and water pollution all contribute to you becoming magnesium deficient.
It is not always easy to eliminate or reduce the factors that contribute to magnesium deficiency. You need to earn a living and going through stress is often something that is unavoidable in order to bring home a pay check. Stress is not something a student can tune out during the examination periods. But the ability to deal with stress might be something that can be worked on and Magnesium can play a role in this.