How one every day mineral can completely transform your health and wellbeing.

Thousands of years ago our ancestors would have been stomping around in nutrient laden soil and mud on a daily basis whilst drinking water and washing in mineral rich stream and seas.

Today, most westerners bathe and drink excessively treated drinking water that has been stripped of its natural nutrients whilst we dress covered from head to toe with our feet rarely getting to absorb any minerals from the earth. With such a highly processed way of existing its no wonder we are deficient of vital minerals such as Calcium and Magnesium.

While many are aware of the importance of calcium, the parallel and in some ways even more crucial role of another essential mineral — magnesium — is less widely known.

There are fifteen essential minerals required by our bodies to function properly. These can be divided into “trace minerals”, those required in very small amounts, and “macro-minerals” or “major minerals”, those required in larger amounts.

The six major minerals required in excess of 250 mg per day include:

Calcium
Magnesium
Potassium
Phosphorous
Sodium
Chloride
The body needs these minerals on a regular basis as it cannot manufacture them. Four percent of the body’s weight is made up of minerals, but their function as regulators is vast.

Magnesium is perhaps one of the most overlooked minerals. This is especially important because, an estimated 80 percent of Americans are deficient in it. 

 The health consequences of deficiency can be quite significant, and can be aggravated by many, if not most, drug treatments. From the year 1900 to 2000 the average magnesium intake has dropped by 50%. The reason for this is that magnesium in foods is destroyed by processing.

Magnesium is predominant in leafy greens and seeds. If you don’t eat a lot of these foods you are probably deficient as well. The minimum amount of magnesium needed by the body is 3 mg per pound. If you have anxiety or fatigue your needs are much greater. Magnesium both energizes and relaxes the body. Not many other elements have this amazing quality.

Dr. Dean has studied and written about magnesium for about 15 years. In January, 2003, she published the first edition of The Magnesium Miracle, according to Dr. Dean, two major lifestyle factors that deplete your body of magnesium are stress and prescription drugs. Unfortunately, the conventional medical approach for the former oftentimes leads to the latter, making your situation progressively worse as Dr. Dean explains:

The scenario that I like to talk about is very basic. You will recognize it immediately in either yourself or your family members. You go to your doctor. You’re under massive stress. Massive stress means you’re losing magnesium. You’re burning magnesium out of your body, because it helps support your adrenal glands. It helps keep you away from anxiety and depression. It helps relax your muscles.

 By adding this mineral to your diet, you are guarding against—and helping to alleviate—such threats as heart disease, stroke, osteoporosis, diabetes, depression, arthritis, and asthma. 

 There are a number of factors implicated in the disease process, and many of them can be traced back to a deficiency in minerals.  So if we decide to take a mineral, which one do we choose? It appears magnesium should be at the top of the list, as it could quite possibly be the panacea to many health problems.

Symptoms of magnesium deficiency:

– Heart disease
– Muscle cramping
– Diabetes
– Stress and sleep disorders
– Bowel disease
– Osteoporosis

Recently re-discovered as an overlooked key to good health, a number of medical researchers are recommending increases to the RDA for magnesium, with a report stating that it is essential to life, necessary for good health, and a vital component within our cells, magnesium’s benefits help our bodies maintain balance, avoid illness, perform well under stress, and maintain a general state of good health.

Magnesium’s benefits can include reduced symptoms from conditions such as chronic pain, fatigue and insomnia. Magnesium may also provide protection from a number of chronic diseases, especially those associated with aging and stress.

Conditions that can benefit from increased Magnesium intake:
Magnesium is known to reduce muscle tension, lessen pain associated with migraine headaches, improve sleep, and address neurological disorders such as anxiety and depression.

Conditions linked to magnesium levels include:

Pain:

Headaches
Muscle Spasms and Muscle Cramps
Fibromyalgia
Mental Health and Sleep:

Anxiety
Depression
Autism and ADD
Restless Leg Syndrome (RLS)
Insomnia
Tics

Other Conditions:

Psoriasis, Acne and Eczema
Asthma
Blood Pressure
Diabetes
Osteoporosis
Magnesium works within our cells — the powerhouses, factories and regulators of the body’s systems.

Because it is a necessary part of hundreds of biochemical reactions occurring constantly inside our cells, magnesium’s presence or absence affects the brain, the muscles, and the heart and blood vessels.

Researchers suggest that adding magnesium to their diets decreased the participants sympathetic nervous activity, effectively reducing stress and allowing them to relax.

Calcium is often pointed out as necessary for stronger bones, but it means little if you don’t have adequate levels of magnesium and vitamin D.

Magnesium activates cellular enzyme activity, allowing the body to convert vitamin D into its active form to help with calcium absorption and bone building. Magnesium aids the release of the hormone calcitonin, which helps to preserve bone structure and draws calcium out of the blood and soft tissues and back into the bones.

It should be noted that magnesium is also positively identified in helping with a number of other critical processes including brain function, muscle building, metabolic action, balancing blood sugar and digestion.

On a personal note, I started spraying Magnesium Oil on the soles of my feet every night and having magnesium flake baths about six months ago and the results have been life altering and I can attest to first hand, that the addition of adequate magnesium to your life can help you can drastacilly improve your overall wellbeing, I’m now super chilled. Choose quality supplements that suit you, I prefer applying topically as well as eating a diet full of leafy green vegetables, seaweed, nuts/seeds, and cacao, to experience the benefits of this ‘miracle mineral’.

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