AL-HUDA
Foundation, NJ U. S. A
the Message Continues ... 5/94
Newsletter for June 2009
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by:
Health
experts frequently emphasize the importance of having adequate
levels of vitamins and minerals in your diet. While most people
try to stay informed about which vitamins and minerals are most
beneficial to their health, there are still many nutrients that
have benefits that are underestimated and even forgotten.
Magnesium is certainly one of these elements.
Magnesium
is a mineral that is essential to many biological processes that
occur in the body. Magnesium aids in the body’s absorption of
calcium and also plays a key role in the strength and formation
of bones and teeth. This means that those at risk for
osteoporosis can benefit from taking magnesium.
Magnesium
also is vital for maintaining a healthy heart. Magnesium helps
stabilize the rhythm of the heart and helps prevent abnormal
blood clotting in the heart. Magnesium also aids in maintaining
healthy blood pressure levels. The mineral magnesium can
significantly lower the chance of heart attacks and strokes, and
can even aid in the recovery from a heart attack or stroke.
Magnesium
also helps maintain proper muscle function. It works to keep
muscles properly relaxed. Because of its benefits in relieving
stiff muscles, magnesium can be especially beneficial to
fibromyalgia patients.
Most
people do not maintain proper levels of magnesium. For this
reason, many people would greatly benefit from supplementing
their diet with magnesium.
Magnesium deficiency....
Essential
for hundreds of chemical reactions that occur in the body every
second, the mineral magnesium has received surprisingly little
attention over the years. Recent findings, however, suggest that
it has important health-promoting benefits.
Among the
world’s leading researchers in the field is Dr. Mildred Seelig,
a pediatrician, internal medicine specialist and master of
public health who has been studying magnesium for the past 35
years. She wrote with nutritionist Dr. Andrea Rosanoff the
volume The Magnesium Factor.
In their
book, they stress that magnesium is one of the most important
nutrients, but that the majority of people in Western societies
suffer from magnesium deficiency. The authors argue that this
deficiency is a major cause of both heart disease and diabetes,
as well as a significant number of other common ailments which
entail a serious risk of dying prematurely.
“The
solution to heart disease has been with us all along, and it is
nutritional,” according to The Magnesium Factor. “Most
modern heart disease is caused by magnesium deficiency. A vast
and convincing body of research — largely ignored — has
convinced us and many of our colleagues of this fact. The diet
of the industrial world is short on magnesium, and this is
causing an epidemic of heart disease... The effects of a low
intake of magnesium can be worsened by the high levels of fat,
sugar, sodium and phosphate in our diets, as well as,
ironically, by the use of calcium supplements, which has become
widespread because of our awareness of calcium's value for bone
health.”
Low
magnesium, say the experts, causes heart arrhythmia and is
involved in migraine attacks. Many of the studies noted that
drugs used in the treatment of asthma cause a loss of magnesium.
Research has shown that it can be vital to heart function, and
limits muscle damage during a heart attack; relieves
bronchospasm (constricted airways) in the lungs; protects
hearing from excess noise; improves parathyroid function;
benefits sleep; improves the bio-availability of Vitamin B6 and
cholesterol; strengthens tooth enamel; helps improve the
functioning of the nerves and muscles; and aids regulation of
normal heart rhythm.
Do you need
magnesium?
Signs include:
Green
vegetables such as spinach provide magnesium because the center
of the chlorophyll molecule contains magnesium. Nuts, seeds, and
some whole grains are also good sources of magnesium.
Although
magnesium is present in many foods, it usually occurs in small
amounts. As with most nutrients, daily needs for magnesium
cannot be met from a single food. Eating a wide variety of
foods, including five servings of fruits and vegetables daily
and plenty of whole grains, helps to ensure an adequate intake
of magnesium.
The
magnesium content of refined foods is usually low. Whole-wheat
bread, for example, has twice as much magnesium as white bread
because the magnesium-rich germ and bran are removed when white
flour is processed. The table of food sources of magnesium
suggests many dietary sources of magnesium.
Water can
provide magnesium, but the amount varies according to the water
supply. “Hard” water contains more magnesium than “soft” water.
Dietary surveys do not estimate magnesium intake from water,
which may lead to underestimating total magnesium intake and its
variability.
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