Magnesium and Vitamin D3

You work hard, you make decisions for yourself; you do not others make decisions for you.

Magnesium, as you read elsewhere, participates in close to 600 enzymatic reactions and 80% of the body’s basic enzymatic reactions. 1 It is reported that 68% of Americans for example do not ingest the RDA of magnesium. 2 Magnesium deficiency may be an issue. More on that soon. As in this section I will discuss magnesium, why it is important, we are deficient and more.

Things like cardiac excitability, neuro muscular conduction, stabile mitochondrial membranes, nerve conduction glucose metabolism, protein synthesis, cell reproduction and division, bone metabolism, and glucose and insulin metabolism to name a few. 3 It is extremely important in allowing the body to function properly.

The distribution of magnesium in the body is such. With approximately 50% contained in either our cells or approximately 50% contained in our bones. Only .3% is found in our serum. 4 The serum being the fluid found around our cells and the fluid we use to evaluate blood results.

Then the concentration of magnesium is 14 times higher in our cells than in our serum. With our bodies magnesium constantly moving between our cells and our serum. Thus small changes in the cellular magnesium levels are due to these large concentration differences. This can lead to large changes in our serum magnesium blood plasma levels(BPL).

Thus serum BPLs(the typical test to check magnesium BPLs) are not an accurate measure of our body’s magnesium stores. So often I see normal serum magnesium BPLs, however their magnesium stores are depleted. Such that if or when they took large doses of oral vitamin D3 without also taking magnesium precipitating magnesium deficiency.

In the first edition of this book I wrote one sentence about vitamin D3 and magnesium. As I knew it had a place concerning vitamin D3, but I was not fully aware of what it was. Also I felt pressure to finish my book. As not too long after the first edition was publish-October 28. 2018, we would discover Covid-19. Not that I knew it was coming just as I wrote I felt pressure to publish it quickly.

Who knows? Hopefully, it helped keep some out of the hospital or worse. The other was I had for years prior to starting on my journey with higher dosing of vitamin D3. I had been a huge fan of magnesium so I had had my patients take as much magnesium as they could tolerate. Half in the am and half in the pm. Too much causing diarrhea.

The Institute of Medicines daily recommendation for elemental magnesium- 5

Age Male Female Pregnancy Lactation

Birth to 6 months 30 mg* 30 mg*

7–12 months 75 mg* 75 mg*

1–3 years 80 mg 80 mg

4–8 years 130 mg 130 mg

9–13 years 240 mg 240 mg

14–18 years 410 mg 360 mg 400mg 360 mg

19–30 years 400 mg 310 mg 350 mg 310 mg

31–50 years 420 mg 320 mg 360 mg 320 mg

51+ years 420 mg 320 mg

Where most people are magnesium deficient or borderline deficient my patients were not. As I had had my patients take magnesium because of its overall positive effects on people. So none of my patients were magnesium deficient. Now you may point out published numbers show that compliance rates are low. That is patients not taking the medications that they were prescribed.

My patients did not act that way. It is because they saw its benefits. If my patients had been I would have seen and learned of the tight connection between vitamin D3. As if one is borderline deficient or deficient in magnesium, taking oral vitamin D3 like I recommended to my patients would have used a lot of their magnesium stores. Precipitating magnesium deficiency and its related symptoms.

As vitamin D3 taken orally requires magnesium to be absorbed from the small intestine. Then vitamin D3 taken orally and/or that produced in the skin requires magnesium for many of its enzymatic processes. Thus the reason starting out magnesium deficient or borderline deficient is not good. Potentially resulting in lower magnesium levels and related symptoms.

Thus in those already magnesium deficient, like most, by taking oral vitamin D3 worsening one’s magnesium deficiency. Especially if they are taking larger doses like optimal dosing. That or as many doctors start off dosing their vitamin D3 deficient patients like some sources recommend at 50,000 IU a week for six to eight weeks. However I have not heard of one doctor yet who did this.

That is mentioned to their patients to buy over the counter magnesium or write their patients a prescription for it. Such that their patients by not taking magnesium with the vitamin D3 can precipitate magnesium deficiency. So if one is starting to take higher oral doses of vitamin D3. It is important to supplement all patients who can medically tolerate it with magnesium.

.

Some of the major symptoms of magnesium deficiency are some of the followings:

1. Muscle spasms
2. Heart palpitations
3. Anxiety
4. Difficulty getting to sleep.
5. Low energy levels
6. Poor sugar metabolism
7. High blood pressure
8. Poor bone structure
9. Poor vitamin D3 metabolism (much of this chapter)

I thus was surprised when people started taking higher doses of vitamin D3 and developed symptoms of magnesium deficiency. A big part of the issue is that our foods are becoming increasingly bereft of important nutrients. I recently read that cabbage, lettuce and spinach for example have lost about 80% of its magnesium content over the past 100 years. 6

Other reasons people develop magnesium deficiency besides its deficiency in our foods is gut issues like celiac disease, taking antibiotics, processed foods, consuming lots of diuretics(alcohol and caffein), taking diuretics , taking proton pump inhibitors(to treat peptic ulcer disease) and age. Thus either foods that are bereft of magnesium or substances that cause the loss of magnesium from our body.

Since I published my first book, I started a Facebook group Vitamin D Advocacy and posted about magnesium there. Promoting the Facebook page on my website. Also many of the initial readers of my book are those already knowledgeable about nutrition and supplements. So the need for magnesium was nothing new to them. So if there was a group for me not get it right then they were them.

I have worked to get the word out concerning magnesium deficiency since. Since I have become aware of its need. Magnesium that is. I am not alone though. Fortunately, many of the people who have been members of the Facebook group Vitamin D Advocacy also are. As are those I come across on the Subreddit r/vitamind. Hopefully, it will soon host a critical mass of people and this information will become common knowledge.

As a way to evaluate my theories I went and posted on Reddit. There is where I found many had heard of the importance of higher doses of vitamin D3. Increasingly it is being promoted by the “experts”. These “experts” on vitamin D3 mention nothing about magnesium. So I have educated those that show up there.

That or others on Reddit who were are prescribed 50,000 IU a week of vitamin D, but without magnesium, by their doctor. Then magnesium deficient or borderline patients often develop worse magnesium deficiency after ingesting this dose. These people were left to believe vitamin D caused their issues.

Which in reading peoples experience from Reddit I saw this far too often. Medical doctors prescribe boluses of vitamin D3 of 50,000 IU or 60,000 IU once a week, however they do not recommend they take magnesium with their high doses of vitamin D3. My fear is some over aggressive physician will prescribe extremely high doses of vitamin D3, cause magnesium deficiency.

This in some patients causing them harm. Oh no they have already done that. Where a published article “showed” higher doses of vitamin D3 in the form of monthly boluses caused an increased fracture rate in the elderly. 7 Boluses, but overall inadequate doses all at once of vitamin D3 to the average population could result in at least half the patients in there study developing magnesium deficiency.

The worse the magnesium deficiency often the worse the symptoms. One symptom of magnesium deficiency is muscle cramps. Strong enough muscle cramps causing falls. Enough falls in enough people who have osteopenia/osteoporosis are at high risk of fractures. Especially in vitamin D3 deficient people. Thus the researcher’s ignorance in setting up and conducting this research is harming people.

Which in my personal opinion is malpractice. Then these researchers determined that vitamin D3 was causing these falls. This is also why I have little faith in scientific studies as far too often they are like my grandfather’s description of statistics. That is in his reference to comparing modern swimming suits to statistics, research studies, what they reveal is startling, what they conceal is vital.

My personal experience in treating countless patients for close to two decades and recommending it since I retired has shown me how important magnesium is. From helping blood sugar levels, falling asleep, controlling blood pressure and anxiety. I really only have one story which to me was amazing concerning patients show amazing response as typically I saw a good but not miraculous result.

One instance that sold me on magnesium was the following. I had a patient who was extremely anxious. So anxious that he was going to the emergency room for months two to three times a week for anxiety attacks. His wife was about to leave him. I had tried over that time many different antianxiety medications to no effect. Xanax, valium, and lorazepam, all powerful medications for anxiety.

Then I had him take as much oral magnesium as he could tolerate. Too much causes diarrhea. Taking half in the am and half in the pm. Starting with 200-400 mg of magnesium citrate or similar magnesium. Then increase every other day by 200 mgs total. His anxiety totally resolved, and he never went back to the emergency room for anxiety. Marriage saved. No more anxiety medications needed.

As I write above, I frequently post on Redditt, as many people go there for medical information. Often really desperate people feel their medical doctors have failed them. There countless numbers of patients were given or started taking higher doses of vitamin D3(sometimes D2). Then developed anxiety symptoms but receiving no help from their medical doctors concerning these new symptoms.

Fortunately by educating many of them on the importance of magnesium their symptoms resolved. Some have a difficult time believing their doctors are so ignorant. I explain if teachable you have to educate yourself and then your doctor, below are some of the options concerning potential magnesium supplements to use and which not to for supplementation.

Magnesium supplement options:

Magnesium citrate-easily absorbed but citrate benefits cancer-8

Magnesium lactate-well absorbed and gentle on system-9

Magnesium glycinate-helps sleep, inflammation decrease blood sugar and blood pressure-10

Magnesium malate-well absorbed with minimal laxative effects. 11

Magnesium L- threonate-In animal studies better absorbed in animal brains-12

Magnesium Taurate-helps support blood pressureand more-13

Magnesium orarate-maybe better for heart disease-14

Magnesium chloride-can be used orally or topically. 15

Magnesium sulfate-Epsom Salt for soaks and baths-16

Are all good choices. Magnesium is the key factor. Each anion(molecule attached to magnesium has its own benefits and potential side effects. That is beyond this text. Poor choices are magnesium oxide and hydroxide due to high concentration of magnesium poorly absorbed and prone to causing diarrhea. One colleague mixes his daily magnesium dose in a liter of water. Sipping on it over the course of the day.

This minimizes side effects. I and I had my patients take as much oral magnesium they could tolerate. Half the daily dose in the morning and half the daily dose at pm. Too much causing diarrhea. If already taking magnesium split your current dose in half with half the daily dose in am and the other half in the pm. If constipated to start with then take your previous daily dose twice a day.

Then every other day increase by 100-200 mg(elemental magnesium). If you are too aggressive go slower. You are increasing your magnesium dose as you are upping your vitamin D3 dose or starting on optimal vitamin D3 doses. As the body adjusts to increased vitamin D3 BPLs you will find your body uses more magnesium.

Once your vitamin D3 BPLs are optimal your need to increase your magnesium will soon stop.

Minerals like magnesium are better absorbed if taken with water or foods. Topical magnesium or Epsom salt baths or soak can help replenish magnesium stores. Though do not overdue it. Though magnesium toxicity is rare I am sure if someone tried hard enough, they could find a way. It takes approximately 5,000 mgs of magnesium a day to cause toxicity. 17 If you have renal failure and/or low blood pressure work with a medical doctor before taking..

Symptoms of magnesium toxicity-18

1. Diarrhea
2. Low blood pleasure
3. Nausea and vomiting
4. Fainting
5. Changes in heart rate
6. Muscle weakness
7. Confusion
8. Low blood pressure
9. Depression
10. Difficulty breathing
11. Kidney damage

Now when looking at a magnesium supplement it is important to know the difference between elemental magnesium and compound magnesium. When you look at magnesium glycinate it is a magnesium salt. The cation(magnesium the positively charged part-actually doubly charged particle) and the cation (glycinate is the negatively charged part).

Magnesium is typically the lower amount of salts weight. In reading the RDA of magnesium it is the elemental magnesium not the magnesium salt weight. In reading the label on a magnesium supplement is it the magnesium salts or elemental magnesium’s weight we, see? It is difficult to understand what we are reading. You can use the RDA percentage to determine which you are reading.

The back of the label can give you an idea. So if it reads a different weight than the front you are reading the magnesium salt on the front and elemental magnesium on the back. If on the back is the only place you see magnesium’s weight. It could be either elemental magnesium or the magnesium salts weight. If that is the case, there is a way to find the elemental magnesium contained in the supplement.

Now if on the back label it reads for example magnesium glycinate 400 mg and 95% of the RDA then you know it, the weight, is elemental magnesium weight. If there is no RDA percentage, it could be the elemental magnesium or magnesium salt weight. In that case you do not know whether it is the elemental or salt they are listing. I would stay away from those.

Foods rich in magnesium, allegedly. Supermarket fruits and vegetables are lacking in magnesium. I recommend you look into growing your own fruits and vegetables. Farmers markets. That which you fertilize and maintain the soil. As that grown on factory farms are lacking magnesium and other minerals due to glyphosate.

Foods rich in magnesium-19

Mg/serving(elemental magnesium(

1. Rosted pumpkin seeds pone ounce 156

2. Chia seeds one ounce 111

3. Almonds 1 ounce 80

4. Spinach ½ cup 78

5. Cashews one ounce dry roasted 74

6. Peanuts oil roasted ¼ cup 63

7. Cereal shredded wheat 2 large biscuits 61

8. Black beans, cooked, ½ cup 60

9.Edamane, shelled, cooked,1/2 cup 50

10. Peanut butter, smooth, two tablespoons 49

Next let us discuss issues affecting magnesium absorption. First only 30-40% of the magnesium ingested is not absorbed. Second, certain medical conditions reduce one’s absorption further. Conditions involving the gut such as Crohn’s disease, gluten-sensitive enteropathy (celiac disease), and regional enteritis. 20 Diabetes, excessive alcohol absorption and older people.

Reasons not to take magnesium without doctors’ supervision are low blood pressure as it can reduce it further or severe kidney failure. Overall magnesium is safe, critical for not only vitamin D3 function but for 600 of the body’s enzymes to function properly. Considering most people are deficient or borderline deficient even if you do not take vitamin D3 you need to consider taking magnesium.

1. https://journals.physiology.org/doi/full/10.1152/physrev.00012.2014

2. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/15930481/

3. https://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/Magnesium-HealthProfessional/#:~:text=Magnesium%20is%20a%20cofactor%20in,regulation%20%5B1%2D3%5D

4. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4455825/

5. https://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/Magnesium-Consumer/

6. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6163803/

7. https://www.thelancet.com/journals/landia/article/PIIS2213-8587(23)00063-3/abstract

8. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32162607/

9. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5837242/

10. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28337245/

11. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/27402922/

12. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/19367681/

13. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/8692051/

14. https://www.consumerlab.com/answers/what-is-the-benefit-of-magnesium-orotate-` compared-to-other-forms-of-magnesium/magnesium-orotate/

15. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29679349/

16. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6857673/

17. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/17726419/

18. https://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/Magnesium-HealthProfessional/

19. https://health.clevelandclinic.org/foods-that-are-high-in-magnesium

20. https://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/Magnesium-HealthProfessional/

AGG- Grober U. Magnesium and drugs. Int J Mol Sci 2019;20(9):2094

https://www.hepper.com/magnesium-for-dogs/

Best general magnesium research article



https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/magnesium-types