Research has shown that people with fibromyalgia tend to be deficient in magnesium ( see The Role of Magnesium in Fibromayalgia ). I've recently been reading about magnesium in "The Complete Book of Minerals for Health" by J.I. Rodale and Staff. I came across a few things that I thought interesting so would like to share them with you. (Note: This book was the 3rd printing and published in 1976. It is probably out of print but if you can find a copy it is very informative and written for the lay person, very easy to read.)

A study is cited in the book in which 5,000 people were tested and 60% were found to be deficient in magnesium. This was over 25 years ago. You can bet that the percentage is now higher. One paper I read suggested that over 70% of the population in the United States may be magnesium deficient.

One bit of information I thought particularly interesting is the role that magnesium plays in the building of bones and teeth, and how fluoride effects magnesium.

I live in Salt Lake City, Utah. In our last local elections (2001) one of the items on the ballot was whether the municipal water supply should be flouridated. The bill passed. Next year we will have flouride added to our water supply. It does not concern me too much personally as my water system will remove fluoride. What is disturbing is that the bill passed in the first place. How can people believe that a substance that is a toxic industrial waste byproduct can be beneficial to ones health.

One thing that I found interesting in this book is that fluoride bonds with magnesium in the blood, into the insoluble magnesium fluoride. This means that the magnesium cannot be assimilated by the pituitary, with the consequent failure of the pituitary to function properly that leads to the symptoms of magnesium deficiency.(pg.99) When the pituitary is not getting the magnesium it needs, it fails in its function of exercising a sort of thermostatic control over the adrenals which are thus allowed to overproduce adrenalin.(pg.89)

Supposedly the benefit of fluoride is that it helps to harden tooth enamel and reduce the incidence of tooth decay. But... a number of studies have now established that it is magnesium, not calcium, that forms the kind of hard enamel that resists decay. And no matter how much calcium that you take, without magnesium it can form only a soft enamel.(pg.105)

One thing that I found amusing was a passage that read: "The dentist of tomorrow, hopefully, will know enough about magnesium to recommend it to use as a decay-preventive measure"(pg.107) Apparently that has not yet happened, at least not here in Utah, since passage of the fluridation bill was being promoted by a number of dentists. According to the information in this book magnesium hardens tooth enamel and fluoride interferes with magnesium absorption. In the long run, it may be found that the fluoride added to the water will have the opposite effect that is desired.

Osteoporosis is a condition of weakening bone density that affects a large number of people today, especially women. Calcium is promoted as a necessary supplement to counteract this condition. In the book it tells of a comparison of the number of bone fractures in two texas cities. According to the findings the thing that was most significant was the greater amount of magnesium in the water supply in the city that had the less incidence of bone fractures and osteoporosis. Dr. Barnett explained. "Our studies, however, have convinced us that the mineral (magnesium) is important -- perhaps the most important single element -- in bone health."(pg.114)

Dr. Barnett says that Calciferol (synthetic vitamin D), like fluorine, tends to bind magnesium. Milk is loaded with this substance and therefore enhances the problem. The synthetic form of the vitamin is 10 times more active than the natural form -- which means it is 10 times more potent in binding magnesium.(pg.100)

Knowing the importance of magnesium in bone health, maybe the synthetic vitamin D added to milk is the reason that osteoporosis is such a widespread problem in nations with large milk consumption. Dr. Barnett says that the first step in reversing magnesium depletion, especially among children, is to eliminate milk from the diet.(pg.99)

It should be noted that large amounts of calcium, too, aggravate magnesium deficiency.(pg.92) So taking a lot of calcium supplements may be counter productive to what you wish to gain from it, increased bone density. Likewise, too much magnesium in the diet interferes with the body's use of calcium, when there is not enough phosphorus present.(pg.73)

At the cellular level... When magnesium is absent from the cells, the structure of ribosomes, which contains the vital nucleic acids, is destroyed. In addition, particles called mitochondria cannot function properly.(pg.81) The presentation " Fibromyalgia: A Hypothesis of Etiology" shows the role that the mitochondria play in the production of energy for the cell.

Ideally, the body should get its minerals from a healthy diet. The best food sources for magnesium are green leafy vegetables. Magnesium is a mineral that requires stomach acid to ionize the mineral so that it can be absorbed by the body. A person may have a healthy diet, but due to disturbances in digestion a number of important vitamins and minerals may not be absorbed.

It is generally assumed that magnesium is generously supplied in our foods. But is it? Not only are meats, eggs and dairy products, the staples of the high protein diet so many Americans are subscribing to, low in magnesium, but the more protein you consume, the more magnesium you need to metabolize this protein.(pg.91) If your diet is too high in fats or lipids, you may need more than ordinary amounts of magnesium because you lose too much of the mineral in those substances.(pg119)

As part of the wellness program we do suggest supplementing magnesium for a short while to help with possible deficiencies. Once digestive health is restored vitamins and minerals should be obtained from a healthy diet.

All the best,
Jim

Another book that addresses the mineral needs of man is "The Chemistry of Man" by Bernard Jensen, Ph.D. Well worth reading.