Magnesium is a crucial mineral for every organ in your body. Your heart needs it, your teeth and bones rely on it.  Magnesium affects enzyme production and energy levels, and it regulates calcium absorption as well as many other nutrients in your body.

Are you getting enough Magnesium?

Most of us don’t get as much magnesium from our diets as we really need. Foods rich in magnesium are those healthy foods many of us don’t eat a lot of – such as whole grains, nuts, and green leafy vegetables.   Restless Legs Syndrome, along with insomnia may be symptoms of magnesium deficiency. Scientific studies support the use of magnesium to help with RLS. The Romanian Journal of Neurology and Psychiatry did biochemical and neurological tests on RLS sufferers and found a pattern of insomnia similar to other forms of insomnia caused by magnesium deficiency.

Calcium vs Magnesium

Calcium causes contraction in skeletal muscle fibres, and magnesium causes relaxation. When there is too much calcium and not enough magnesium inside a cell, you can get sustained muscle contraction: twitches, spasms, and even convulsions. Magnesium permits a small amount of calcium to enter a nerve cell, just enough to allow electrical transmission along the nerves to and from the brain, then forces it back outside. Too much calcium, without the balancing effect of magnesium, can irritate delicate nerve cells of the brain. Cells that are irritated by calcium fire electrical impulses repeatedly, depleting their energy stores and causing the cell to die.

How to Take Magnesium

To increase your magnesium levels, eat a lot of whole grains, oatmeal, and bran cereals. Baked potatoes and green leafy vegetables are good magnesium sources, and so is anything made with fermented soy. Nuts and seeds are rich in magnesium. The recommended magnesium levels for adults are:

• Men 19-30: 400 mg daily
• Women 19-30:  310 mg daily
• Men over 31: 420 mg daily
• Women over 31: 320 mg daily
• Pregnant women:  350-360 mg daily
• Breastfeeding women:  310-320 daily