GREEN NUTRITIONALS MARINE MAGNESIUM
Magnesium is in the spot light as its importance in health and well being becomes increasingly recognized. Approximately 50% of the body’s total magnesium is found in the bone. The other 50% is found in the tissues and organs with only 1% found in the blood. However, the body works very hard to keep this level constant in the blood as magnesium is vital to life. It is an essential component of DNA and is necessary for over 300 metabolic reactions in the body. It helps maintain normal nerve and muscle function, normal heart rhythm, normal neuromuscular conduction, normal blood pressure, and maintains bone integrity as well as glucose and insulin metabolism. The increased interest is due to magnesium’s many functions within the body and its associated role in disease prevention and overall health. Low levels of magnesium for health have been associated with a number of chronic diseases including migraine, headaches, Alzheimer’s disease, stroke, hypertension, cardiovascular disease and type2 diabetes.
Despite the essential nature of magnesium there is no specific food that provides a high amount of magnesium. Good sources of magnesium for health includes whole grains, spinach, nuts, legumes and potatoes. However, even with the wide availability of magnesium in foods at least 60% and possibly as much as 80% of adults do not consume the recommended dietary intake (Rdi) for magnesium (310-420mg/day). ln addition, absorption of magnesium from the small intestine decreases and excretion by the kidneys increases as we age. Symptoms of magnesium deficiency include loss of appetite, nausea, vomiting, fatigue and weakness.
Due to difficulty in reaching the RDI for magnesium from food sources alone,
supplements are increasingly being used. The quality of the magnesium depends not only on its source, the magnesium content of the supplements, but also on its bio availability – that is the ability of magnesium to be absorbed and utilized by the body. Magnesium oxide traditionally has the highest magnesium content at 60% but also the lowest solubility while at the other end of the table below magnesium chloride and magnesium sulfate have the highest solubility but the lowest levels of magnesium. Magnesium hydroxide is the perfect balance possessing a high level of magnesium and 50% higher solubility than magnesium oxide in water (.009g/l vs .006g/l) Furthermore, it is soluble in stomach acid allowing absorption into the blood stream. Indeed, magnesium oxide must convert to magnesium hydroxide before dissolution in acid can begin.
At GREEN NUTRITIONALS, we believe that the more natural a product is the better it is. Therefore, our Marine Magnesium is a pure ocean-sourced, natural form of magnesium hydroxide containing a minimum of 35% magnesium derived from clean waters off the Irish Coast. Marine Magnesium is precipitated from seawater. Seawater contains approximately 3.5% dissolved salts of which about 0.5% is soluble magnesium. The precipitated magnesium hydroxide is washed repeatedly with freshwater and dried to a fine powder. Approximately 500 tonnes of seawater are required to produce 1 tonne of high grade magnesium hydroxide.
For more information, Watch Our Video on Five Reasons to Love Marine Magnesium.
From a Paper written by Dr. Denise O’Gorman.