Magnesium: The Mineral of Life

This mineral is a must have in the body. Your body contains about 2 ounces of magnesium and it is involved in 325 critical bodily reactions, which is more than any other mineral. The main function is to keep muscles relaxed, but other medical conditions like PMS cramping and osteoporosis are linked to deficiency. The wrinkling of the skin is often from the calcification of skin tissues. Increasing your magnesium will stop and even correct some signs of aging.

There is a constant drain of magnesium on the body. We are continually excreting it through sweat and urine, so we need a daily supply to keep our stores up. That explains why about 70-80% of the population is magnesium deficient. We also don’t get nearly enough magnesium in our diet. Our ancestors used to eat a diet exactly the opposite of us – high in magnesium and low in calcium. Calcium was scare and the body learned to hold on to it. Magnesium was plentiful, so the body let out the excess because it knew there would be a constant supply.

The calcium/magnesium balance is like a teeter totter. There should be a 2/1 calcium/magnesium balance in the body. Most people have an 18/1 ratio, and the excess calcium becomes a major problem. Calcium controls the “fight or flight” ignition. When calcium is high you’re often more aggravated and aggressive, which puts enormous stress on your system. Magnesium is the brake pedal to calcium and pulls you out of overdrive.

I often get asked, “Doesn’t everyone need more calcium? I don’t want osteoporosis when I’m old.” In reality, the problem of brittle bones is more a magnesium, vitamin D and acidity problem than it is about not consuming enough calcium. I’ll explain that in more detail in another article, but for now you can think of magnesium as the mortar that allows the bricks of calcium to stick together in the bones.

To correct the imbalance you need a 1/15 intake for a few months. You can’t eat enough spinach to overcome the deficiency, you’ll need a powerful supplement. Unfortunately, taking high even moderate doses of magnesium orally causes Montezuma’s Revenge (a bowel flush). The only way to do it is with magnesium “oil” (actually it’s only magnesium in water, but has an oily feel) that is rubbed on like lotion and absorbed by the skin.

I’ve included both the oil and pill form in the Essential Nutrient Pak because I believe in attacking the problem as quickly as possible using all means available. Also, the pills can help with regular bowel movement when taken at doses of 1-3 pills at night (5 or more often results in the runs).

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