• It’s a Cookbook
    It’s a Philosophy
    It’s a Resource
logologologologo
  • FoodTrients 101 –
  • News –
      • Age Gracefully with Grace O
      • Ginger Hultin, Nutrition
      • Mark Rosenberg, MD
      • Robert Tostado, MD
      • Anti-Aging –
      • Beauty –
      • Food –
      • Health –
      • Exercise –
      • Celiac –
      • Life Extension
      • Books We Love –
      • FoodTrients Guides –
      • Newsletter –
      • capsule full of good foodAre Supplements Safe for You?
      • woman doing yogaSecrets of the Lymphatic System
      • woman fanning herselfWomen, Food, and Hormones: A Plan
      • "collagen" written on a chalkboardSave Your Eyes with Collagen
  • Recipes –
    • SEARCH BY:

      • Category:

      • Starters –
      • Soups –
      • Salads –
      • Main Dishes –
      • Sides –
      • Desserts –
      • Drinks –
      • Extras –
      • Spice Mixes –
      • All Recipes –
      • Or Search By:

      • Anti-inflammatory –
      • Antioxidant –
      • Beauty –
      • Detox –
      • Disease Prevention –
      • Gut Health –
      • Immunity Booster –
      • Mind –
      • Strength –
      • buffalo meat slidersBuffalo Sliders with Cranberries
      • exotic fruit and granolaExotic Fruit Salad with Granola
      • Green Tea NoodlesGreen Tea Noodles with Edamame
      • chocolate mousseDark Chocolate Mousse
  • Resources –
  • About –
  • Shop –
  • Media –
  • Home Page
  • News
    • Age Gracefully
    • Anti-Aging
    • Beauty
    • Food
    • Ginger Hultin, MS RDN CSO
    • Health
    • Newsletter
  • Recipes
    • Starters
    • Soups
    • Salads
    • Main Dishes
    • Sides
    • Desserts
    • Drinks
    • Extras
    • Spice Mixes
  • Resources
    • Anti-Aging Resources
    • Health
    • Eating Well
    • Books We Love
  • About
    • About Grace O
    • Experts and Advisors
    • Contact Us
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • YouTube
    • Pinterest
  • Shop
  • Media
    • In the Media
    • Press Releases
    • Videos
            No results See all results
            ✕
                      No results See all results

                      Magnesium Deficiency – A Normal Sign of Aging?

                      Published by Dr. Mark Rosenberg

                      iStock_000014221078XSmall

                      Some of the most frequent complaints I hear from my patients, especially those older than 50, involves muscle cramps and spasms, notably those leg zingers that make them jump out of bed in the middle of the night; trouble sleeping and daytime stiffness or pain in their muscles.  Most of my patients laugh these symptoms off as just “getting old”, but they’re surprised when I tell them these are more likely symptoms of a magnesium deficiency, which can easily be corrected.  Read on and see if you have any of the common symptoms of low magnesium and what I recommend.

                      Symptoms of Low Magnesium

                      Magnesium is a “macro mineral”, which means it is one of the 6 most important minerals for which your body requires large amounts.  However, magnesium deficiency is fairly common in people over the age of 50 and can stem from a variety of things from dietary imbalances to certain health conditions.  In fact, less than 30% of Americans get the RDA of magnesium, which is the absolute minimum recommendation for magnesium a day!

                      Magnesium deficiency is most common in menopausal women who usually start taking calcium supplements for bone health and may be on estrogen replacement therapy.  If you don’t take a magnesium balanced calcium supplement, you can become deficient in magnesium.  Low carb dieting can also lead to magnesium decreases.

                      Products containing magnesium

                      However, men also get magnesium deficiencies – especially if they drink a lot of coffee, tea or carbonated sodas, or eat a few sugary snacks during the day. Excess refined dietary sugar causes you to lose a lot of magnesium through urination.  Also, if you are under stress frequently, you can become deficient in magnesium due to your body’s increased production of cortisol and adrenaline.  Both of these chemicals can deplete your magnesium stores.

                      Blood tests only show what magnesium is circulating in the blood at the time of the test.   Symptoms are a better gauge to determining if you have a deficiency.  Here are some common symptoms of magnesium deficiency:

                      • Muscle cramps
                      • Facial tics
                      • Poor sleep/anxiety
                      • Chronic pain/fibromyalgia
                      • Headaches

                      Also the following conditions and medications to treat them can cause magnesium deficiencies:

                      1. High blood pressure/congestive heart failure, diuretics.
                      2. Asthma/inhalers, steroid medication.
                      3. Diabetes/insulin, oral antidiabetics.
                      4. Digestive disorders like Crohn, celiac sprue causes loss of magnesium from diarrhea.
                      5. Infections/antibiotics (especially tetracyclines).
                      6. Cancer/chemotherapy drugs – Platinol; suppressed immune system drugs – Neoral.
                      7. Alcohol addiction/low food intake, vomiting, diarrhea can cause magnesium deficiency.
                      8. Liver disease/depletes minerals.
                      9. Burns/surgery – causes stress on the body, depletes magnesium.

                      Recommendations for Magnesium Deficiency

                      If you have any of the conditions or symptoms listed above, you could very well have a magnesium deficiency as they are very common.   Here are some recommendations I give my patients who have symptoms of magnesium deficiency:

                      • Restrict refined sugar in your diet.
                      • Restrict carbonated sodas, especially colas, which disable magnesium uptake.
                      • Eat more magnesium rich foods such as pumpkin seeds, almonds, cashews, unsweetened cocoa powder, halibut, bran, spinach.  Or, take a 250-500 mg magnesium supplement before bedtime especially if you’re bothered by sleep difficulty, leg muscle cramps or daytime muscle stiffness.  Also, try transdermal (topical) magnesium for muscle cramps.
                      • If you have soft water, it would be best to switch to bottled drinking water for consumption and leave your tap water for cleaning.  Soft water depletes magnesium.
                      • Restrict alcohol intake.  Alcohol causes dehydration through frequent urination and magnesium gets depleted from urinary excretion.

                      As I explain to my patients, magnesium is a critical mineral that your body needs to perform all its major functions – especially your heart, muscles and kidneys.  In fact, magnesium is one of the first treatments given in emergency departments in heart attack patients.  Optimal magnesium levels can also prevent stroke and obesity.  If you’re one of the 55% of Americans who have a magnesium deficiency, follow the recommendations I give my own patients for maintaining optimal magnesium levels, and you’ll go a long way to improving most of those symptoms that perhaps you thought were due to just “getting old!”

                      Share
                      Dr. Mark Rosenberg
                      Dr. Mark Rosenberg
                      Dr. Mark Rosenberg received his doctorate from Georgetown University School of Medicine in 1988 and has been involved with drug research since 1991. With numerous certifications in several different fields of medicine, psychology, healthy aging and fitness, Dr. Rosenberg has a wide breadth of experience in both the public and private sector with particular expertise in both the mechanism of cancer treatment failure and in treating obesity. He currently is researching new compounds to treat cancer and obesity, including receiving approval status for an investigational new drug that works with chemotherapy and a patent pending for an oral appetite suppressant. He is currently President of the Institute for Healthy Aging, Program Director of the Integrative Cancer Fellowship, and Chief Medical Officer of Rose Pharmaceuticals. His work has been published in various trade and academic journals. In addition to his many medical certifications, he also personally committed to physical fitness and is a certified physical fitness trainer.

                      Sign Up to get our
                      NEWSLETTER FREE

                      Select list(s) to subscribe to


                      By submitting this form, you are consenting to receive marketing emails from: FoodTrients, 14011 Ventura Blvd., Sherman Oaks, CA, 91423, http://www.foodtrients.com. You can revoke your consent to receive emails at any time by using the SafeUnsubscribe® link, found at the bottom of every email. Emails are serviced by Constant Contact

                      Age Gracefully

                      • Summer Meets Grill for BBQ Ribs and Sliders
                        June 21, 2022
                      • Mint: It Does the Mind & Body Good!
                        June 9, 2022
                      • Tonics
                        Get a Wellness Tune-Up with Terrific Tonics
                        May 31, 2022
                      • Amazing Gooseberries
                        May 30, 2022
                      • eggplant
                        Age Beautifully with FoodTrients
                        May 30, 2022

                      Latest Articles

                      • 0
                        Welcome to the New FoodTrients Website
                        June 21, 2022
                      • 0
                        How to Know Which Supplements You Need
                        June 21, 2022
                      • Summer Meets Grill for BBQ Ribs and Sliders
                        June 21, 2022
                      • Successful Aging: Health Span Is What Matters
                        June 20, 2022
                      • Top 10 Medicinal Herbs Growing in your Garden
                        June 20, 2022

                      SEE MORE

                      ABOUT

                      • Grace O
                      • Our Experts
                      • FoodTrients
                      • Board of Advisors
                      • FAQs

                      EXPLORE

                      • Age Gracefully by Grace O
                      • News
                      • Recipes
                      • Our Guides
                      • Resources
                      • Shop
                      • Media

                      CONNECT

                      • Contact Us
                      • Subscribe
                      • Facebook
                      • Pinterest
                      • Instagram
                      • Twitter
                      • YouTube

                      SIGN UP for our NEWSLETTER

                      Nourish your week! Get the latest wellness news and delicious recipes to help you age better.

                      Select list(s) to subscribe to


                      By submitting this form, you are consenting to receive marketing emails from: FoodTrients, 14011 Ventura Blvd., Sherman Oaks, CA, 91423, http://www.foodtrients.com. You can revoke your consent to receive emails at any time by using the SafeUnsubscribe® link, found at the bottom of every email. Emails are serviced by Constant Contact

                      FoodTrients Trademark™ and copyright © 2011-2022 Triple G Enterprises. I Terms and Conditions I Privacy

                      This website is for informational and entertainment purposes only and is not a substitute for medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. FoodTrients – A Recipe for Aging Beautifully Grace O, author and creator of FoodTrients® -- a philosophy, a cookbook and a resource -- has a new cookbook dedicated to age-defying and delicious recipes, The Age Beautifully Cookbook: Easy and Exotic Longevity Secrets from Around the World, which provides one hundred-plus recipes that promote health and well-being. The recipes are built on foundations of modern scientific research and ancient knowledge of medicinal herbs and natural ingredients from around the world. Since the publication of her first anti-aging book, The Age GRACEfully Cookbook, Grace O has identified eight categories of FoodTrients benefits (Anti-inflammatory, Antioxidant, Immune Booster, Disease Prevention, Beauty, Strength, Mind, and Weight Loss) that are essential to fighting aging, which show how specific foods, herbs, and spices in the recipes help keep skin looking younger, prevent the diseases of aging, and increase energy and vitality. Grace O combines more exotic ingredients that add age-fighting benefits to familiar recipe favorites.

                                No results See all results