Low magnesium levels are leading to a worrying level of undissolved calcium and increased heavy metal toxicity which can severely impact on our health and wellbeing, say mineral analysis experts.
- Laboratory tests by Mineral Check on 8,000 hair samples (looking at magnesium, calcium and toxic nutrients) showed that 70% had a lower than expected level of magnesium required for a healthy functioning body
- Of these, one in five had an exceptionally low magnesium level
- Those with low levels of magnesium tended to have excessive levels of calcium and toxic metals
- The Government’s Diet and Nutrition survey also highlighted that adults in the UK have a magnesium intake lower than necessary for a healthy body and over half of our teenage girls have an intake equivalent to gross deficiency
- Magnesium is needed for calcium absorption and to flush the body of toxic nutrients absorbed through diet and our polluted environment
The link between calcium and magnesium is not widely understood by the public or many doctors, leaving many taking calcium supplements even though they may be getting all the calcium they need from their diet.
Calcium and magnesium must be in balance for the body’s cells to withstand stress and function properly. An imbalance can cause painful conditions such as hardening and narrowing of the arteries, gall stones, kidney stones, calcification in joints and muscles, calcium deposits in organs, muscle pain and cramps. By maintaining healthy magnesium levels, calcium is better absorbed into the bone.
Heavy metal toxicity (aluminium, copper, lead etc.) can disturb your brain chemistry causing depression and anxiety. It can also significantly weaken your immune system and can have an impact on fertility. Studies have shown that copper toxicity can have an impact on oestrogen levels and increased levels of lead can effect sperm quality.
Magnesium is needed to dislodge the toxic metals from the bodies tissues, such as the brain, liver, kidneys and muscles allowing them to be excreted safely. It is needed for more than 325 biochemical reactions in the body and helps to maintain normal muscles and nerve function, keeps heart rhythm steady and is important for bone health. It acts as an aid to muscle tension, cramping and restful sleep.
Intensive farming has seen the magnesium content in vegetables decline by as much as 80 per cent since 1950. Our modern diets actively deplete magnesium; caffeine, alcohol, processed grains and sugar all prompt the kidneys to expel magnesium.
Whilst food fortification or traditional oral supplementation is possible the whole process is rather slow and successful remineralisation not guaranteed to succeed.
Karen Watkins, Nutritional Therapist at Mineral Check, said:
The laboratory has been checking mineral levels of tens of thousands of people for many years, and it is rare we see someone with optimum magnesium levels. In fact, on occasions where someone has good levels of magnesium in their system, we find it is often only because they have been taking a good quality mineral supplement.
A clinical trial by Cardiff University showed how well BetterYou magnesium is absorbed through the skin. A further study by Watkins Josling showed that BetterYou magnesium can elevate cellular magnesium levels up to five times faster than traditional tablets or capsules.
Andrew Thomas, founder and managing director at BetterYou, said:
Magnesium can, of course, be obtained by diet – but only if the diet is packed full of brown rice, leafy green vegetables, nuts and seeds and avoids processed foods, bad fats and sugars. With today’s modern diet this is extremely unlikely, and so usually magnesium supplementation is required to maintain healthy magnesium levels.
BetterYou magnesium is available as a spray, bath flakes and body butter and lotion from Holland Barrett, betteryou.com and all good health stores.
https://betteryou.com/