Liquid Mineral Magnesium
Magnesium for Bone Health
Of the 25 grams of magnesium in your body, 50 to 60 percent is stored in your skeletal system. Magnesium helps assimilate calcium into your bones and plays a role in activating vitamin D, also essential for healthy bones.
A study published by the International Journal of Endocrinology in 2018 reported that low levels of magnesium are associated with low bone density in both pre- and postmenopausal women. Magnesium intake led to increased bone density in people of all ages and was found to possibly reduce the risk of osteoporotic fractures.
Magnesium as a Laxative
Magnesium is useful to relieve constipation because it helps relax muscles in the digestive tract and also neutralizes stomach acid. Magnesium is often used to prepare the bowels for surgical or diagnostic procedures.
A primary ingredient in many laxatives is liquid magnesium. For example, Phillips' Milk of Magnesia contains 500 milligrams of elemental magnesium per tablespoon. A dose is up to 4 tablespoons daily.
WebMD says the dosage for constipation using magnesium sulfate (epsom salts) is 10 to 30 grams in a liquid solution of 8 ounces of water.
Magnesium for Heart Health
Another one of magnesium benefits is its contribution to your cardiovascular system. Magnesium supplements are used for treating disorders of the heart and blood vessels, including angina, irregular heartbeat, hypertension, metabolic syndrome, clogged arteries, stroke and high cholesterol levels, according to WebMD.
Patients who receive magnesium soon after a heart attack may reduce their risk of mortality, says Medical News Today. The Framingham Heart Study showed magnesium intake is associated with a lower risk of atherosclerosis, which is a fatty buildup on the walls of your arteries causing high blood pressure and the risk of stroke.
The study, published in JACC Cardiovascular Imaging in 2015, found that those with a high intake of magnesium had a 58-percent reduced chance of coronary artery calcification and a 34-percent lowered risk of abdominal artery calcification. Results suggested that magnesium may offer protection from stroke and fatal coronary heart disease.
Magnesium for Headaches
Migraines and other types of headaches are often promoted by a deficiency in magnesium, which plays a role in neurotransmitter release and vasoconstriction. The National Institutes of Health reported that people who experience migraine headaches have lower magnesium levels than those who do not.
A study in 2014 evaluated and compared the effects of magnesium sulfate supplementation to a commonly used medication for the treatment of migraine headaches. Findings, published in the Journal of Emergency Medicine found that the group given magnesium sulfate had faster, more effective pain relief than the combination of medications typically used for migraine treatment.
Read more: Headaches and Migraines
Anxiety, Depression and Sleep Disorders
If you find you cannot sleep because of stress, anxiety or depression, you may have low levels of magnesium. Magnesium helps quiet nerve activity by maintaining healthy levels of GABA, a neurotransmitter that promotes sleep, according to the Sleep Doctor. Magnesium can also help insomnia that's linked to restless-leg syndrome.
To analyze stress reduction and magnesium intake, researchers administered 400 milligrams of magnesium to patients for 90 days. Findings published in the journal MMW Fortschritte Der Medizin in 2016 reported that people with mental and physical stress can benefit from magnesium to help relieve restlessness, irritability, depression and sleep disorder.