Are you low in magnesium?

Although we have talked in general about lots of people being low in magnesium, it begs the querstion are you low in Magnesium?  Given we can’t take a test, what are the signs you can look for to see if you are low magnesium?

  • Anxiety
  • Times of hyperactivity
  • Difficulty getting to sleep
  • Difficulty staying asleep
  • Muscle spams and muscle cramping
  • Fibromyalgia
  • Facial tics
  • Eye twitches or involuntary evey movements

In clinic we often see clients who’s muscles are really tight or contracted.  Without magnesium in our body our muscles would be in a constant state of contraction.  It should be noted that calcium causes our muscles to contract.  While calcium and magnesium have actions that oppose each other they function as a team.  So you must always consider your calcium levels when considering your magnesium levels.

References

Seelig M, Rosanoff A. The Magnesium Factor. New York: Avery Books; 2003

Related Posts

  • Can reflexology help control symptoms in cancer patients undergoing treatment?

    Following on form last week's article where I explained that I believe in complementary medicine rather than alternative medicine, I wanted to share some scientific evidence. Between June 2015 to February 2016 a randomised clinical trail was carried out in the US looking at how effective reflexology was in assisting patients with colorectal cancer who received chemo radiotherapy.  60 patients were split into 3 groups.  The first group received massage using classical massage techniques.  The second group received reflexology.  The final group, the control group, only received hospital standard care.  All patients received were provided with the same clinic routine care. The researchers collectd data using an introductory form and the European Organisation for Research and Treatmend of Cancer quality of life questerionaires (C30 & CR29). The first group who receive classical massage found it was

    • effective in reducing pain levels
    • effective in reducing distension incidence
    The second group,  the reflexology group recived foot reflexology focusing on symptom-oriented reflexes twice a week during a 5-week chmeo radiotherapy treatment schedule.  They found it was
    • effecitve in reducing pain levels
    • effective in reducing fatigue levels
    • lower incidence of distension
    • lower incidence of urinary frequency
    • improved quality of life
    In conclusion this randomised control trial of cancer patients on chemo and radiotherapy treatments showed reflexology lowered the impact side-effects of standard care and improved quality of life. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28176423  
  • Do self hypnosis CD’s really boost resilience?

    As things are now back to full swing after the summer holiday, and before things get too budy, I wanted to share with you a piece of research that while being 3 years old is still highly relevant.  Researchers were looking at the effectiveness of listening to self-administered hypnosis stress reduction CD's to boost resilience. Eleven subjects took part in the study, all healthy, normally coping and functioning individuals - were provided with a self-administered hypnosis stress reduction CD, to be used for a minimum of 5 days a week over a 12 week period.  The CD contained two different hypnosis tracks, one to be played before sleep (25 minutes in duration) and the other to be played in the morning (lasting 7 minutes). The aim of the CD was to recondition the stress response, by minimising the participants "excessive emotional and physical reaction to perceived work and life stressors, while facilitating their coping skills and resilience."   Chronic stress and anxiety have been associated with inflammatory changes in the body, and high level of inflammation have been lined to a number of acute and chronic conditions.  Blood tests were used to measure the level of inflammatory response and self-reported measures (using the StressScan assesment) were taken pre and post intervention. While the study size is small, it provides some suggestive evidence that a self-administered stress reduction program that is time efficient may be clinically effective for modifying the stress response and boosting resilience. Reference Schoen M and Nowack K (2013)  Reconditioning the stress response with hypnosis CD reduces the inflammatory cytokine IL-6 and influences resilience: a pilot study.  Complementary Therapies in Clinical Practice 2013; 19 83-88 http://www.ctcpjournal.com/article/S1744-3881(12)00088-6/abstract

  • Spending time in nature is good for you..

    I know previously I have talked about the benefits I get from spending time in nature (see >> Does nature restore you? - Part 1 & Part 2), [...]