The one word he ties to magnesium
Dr. Martin opened this episode with a whiteboard and a single word written on it. Every time magnesium comes up, that word is what he wants you to think of.
Dr. Martin, The Doctor Is In, Episode 1334Whenever you hear magnesium, in my mind, I hear the word relax because magnesium is really important for you to relax.
Relax is not a figure of speech here. Magnesium works on smooth muscle, which lines your blood vessels and your bowel. It supports the calming side of your nervous system. Almost everything he goes on to say about magnesium comes back to that one idea.
Why a normal blood test misses it
A lot of women over 60 have had magnesium on a blood panel and been told it is fine. He does not think that settles it.
Dr. Martin, The Doctor Is In, Episode 1334See, magnesium belongs in your tissue more than your blood.
There is very little magnesium in the blood. The vast majority is stored in tissue, so a result in the normal range is not a good indicator of how much you actually have. His estimate is that 60 to 70% of the population is low.
Three reasons women run low
The soil. Eggs, meat, cheese, fruit and vegetables all carry some magnesium. They just do not carry what they used to, because of erosion in the soil. If it is not in the soil, it is not in the plants, and the animals eating those plants get less too.
Medications. This is the one he spends the most time on. A lot of medications deplete magnesium, he says. The two he names are acid reducers, the proton pump inhibitors and the over the counter antacids taken for reflux, and diuretics and other blood pressure medications. Acid reducers lower stomach acid, and without enough stomach acid you do not absorb magnesium well. Blood pressure pills, he says, strip magnesium out of the body. If you take either one, this part is worth knowing.
Stress. He calls magnesium the stress mineral. Stress can be relationships, money or family, or plastics and chemicals your body reads as stress.
Magnesium, cortisol and sleep
The first organ he goes to is the adrenal glands, the two small glands on top of your kidneys that make cortisol. Cortisol is meant to rise in the morning to wake you up, then fall through the day so it is close to nothing by evening and you can sleep. Magnesium supports the adrenals, and when it is low you also get less GABA, the calming signal in the brain.
Dr. Martin, The Doctor Is In, Episode 1334Well, you're not relaxing when you have low magnesium. You don't relax, you don't calm down.
He connects low magnesium with anxiety, fatigue and exhaustion, and with restless legs at night, where you want to sleep and your legs will not settle. Some people take magnesium before bed for exactly that reason. For the cortisol side of the story there is more in how to lower cortisol after 60.
"Magnesium is a natural calcium blocker."
Dr. Martin, The Doctor Is In, Episode 1334The natural calcium blocker
This is the part of the episode he is most passionate about. You need calcium in your bones and teeth. You do not want it in your bloodstream.
Dr. Martin, The Doctor Is In, Episode 1334Why is that important? Because calcium, think of it hardens. That's good in your bones, that's good in your teeth, but that's not good guys in your blood vessels.
When magnesium is low, he says, calcium goes up in the blood, inflammation goes up with it, and you get one of the routes to hardening of the arteries. The left ventricle of your heart holds the most magnesium of anywhere, and he sees it as the guard that keeps calcium out. Low magnesium also means less nitric oxide, so blood vessels do not open as well. Magnesium relaxes the smooth muscle in those vessels, which is why he ties it to blood pressure. He covers the nitric oxide side in is nitric oxide safe after 60 and blood flow in how to improve circulation after 60.
The same idea runs through the kidneys, where extra calcium means inflammation and stones, the carotid arteries, the brain, and soft tissue, where it shows up as calcium deposits in a shoulder, a knee or a heel spur. He pairs magnesium with vitamin K2, found in butter and cheese, as the two that keep calcium in its place. When a viewer asked whether magnesium helps with osteoporosis, his answer was yes, because it helps put calcium where it belongs.
Blood sugar and the bowel
Your pancreas has beta cells that make insulin, and he says those cells rely on magnesium.
Dr. Martin, The Doctor Is In, Episode 1334So when you're low in magnesium, you know what happens? You secrete more insulin. You don't want that.
High circulating insulin is the problem he talks about more than any other. It stores sugar as fat and sits behind metabolic syndrome. Low magnesium adds to it.
Then there is the bowel. Magnesium helps peristalsis, the muscle movement that moves stool along, by relaxing the smooth muscle of the gut.
Dr. Martin, The Doctor Is In, Episode 1334One of the big problems in our society today is constipation in spite of the amount of fiber that people eat.
For years patients told him they could not go without their bran or oatmeal. His reply was that they might be low in magnesium and never thought of it.
Which magnesium, and how much
He likes two forms. Citrate he calls probably the most bioavailable of all, and it relaxes the bowel, so he suggests it if constipation is a problem. A few people find it loosens the stool too much. Bisglycinate he calls very bioavailable too, and says your body loves it. He also likes the other forms ending in "ate", such as malate and taurate. He takes magnesium every day himself, citrate and bisglycinate both.
His amount is somewhere between 500 and 1,000 milligrams a day. The form to avoid swallowing is oxide, which he only likes as a cream rubbed on the legs.
Dr. Martin, The Doctor Is In, Episode 1334The only side effect of too much magnesium is if you get diarrhea.
If you take blood pressure medication or anything for your kidneys, talk to your own doctor before adding a mineral like this.
Common questions
Should a woman over 60 take magnesium?
Dr. Martin thinks most people are low, around 60 to 70% of the population, because of soil, medications and stress. He links it to sleep, anxiety, heart and arteries, blood sugar and the bowel, and takes it every day himself.
What is the best magnesium for a woman over 60?
He likes citrate and bisglycinate. Citrate is his pick if constipation is a problem. Bisglycinate is very well absorbed and easy on most people. He says not to take oxide by mouth.
How much magnesium should I take a day?
His range on this episode is around 500 milligrams, up to 1,000 milligrams a day. He says the only side effect of too much is loose stool.
My blood test says my magnesium is normal. Am I fine?
Not necessarily, in his view. Most magnesium is stored in tissue, not blood, so the blood test is not a good indicator of what you actually have.
The form he says your body loves
Bisglycinate is one of the two forms Dr. Martin likes, very bioavailable and gentle for most people. Martin Clinic's Magnesium Bisglycinate is that form.
60-day money-back guarantee. Formulated in clinic.These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. Always consult your healthcare practitioner before starting a new supplement, especially if you are pregnant, nursing, taking medication, or have a medical condition.
