From the Desk of Carolyn Dean MD ND
There is a paper being vetted right now by the journal Nutrients called “Neuroprotective Effects of Magnesium: Implications in Neuroinflammation and Cognitive Decline” by a board member of the Orthomolecular Medicine News Service. I’m also on that board, and the author of this paper asked me for my input, and he subsequently put my name on the list of authors. I’ll announce a link when it’s published. Still, I want to mention this article in this blog to highlight the ongoing research that keeps on emphasizing magnesium as the most important mineral in human biology and physiology.
The introduction to the “Neuroprotective” article will be a version of the following:
Neurodegenerative diseases, marked by progressive neuronal loss and cognitive decline, are a significant concern in the aging society. Neuroinflammation, a shared characteristic of these diseases, is implicated in their pathogenesis. This article briefly summarizes the role of magnesium, an essential mineral involved in numerous enzymatic reactions and critical for neuronal bioactivity, in the context of neuroinflammation and cognitive decline. The potential neuroprotective effects of magnesium are also elaborated, including the mechanisms of neuroprotection by magnesium through maintaining neuronal ion homeostasis, mitigating inflammation, and preventing excitotoxicity. Additionally, we discuss the impact of inadequate magnesium on neuroinflammation and its potential as a therapeutic agent in attenuating cognitive decline to improve neurodegenerative conditions.
Yes, absolutely yes, magnesium has potential neuroprotective effects, so why aren’t we using it? Why aren’t doctors looking for safe solutions and safe preventive measures for their patients?
A Friend of Magnesium
While working on the above article, I read Dr. James DiNicolantonio’s book, The Immunity Fix, and noticed that he mentions magnesium 243 times. He is truly a great friend of magnesium, and I really must educate him about ReMag® so that he can see how saturating our cells with magnesium ions can accomplish even more than supplementing with a magnesium compound.
In the meantime, let me review what DiNicolantonio says about magnesium in Chapter 9. You can read the book and learn much more; it’s a great reference book. It rolls out facts like a military operation with a total of 2,415 references. Yes, two-thousand, four hundred and fifteen!
- “…the percentage of the U.S. population not meeting the estimated average requirement or adequate intake for the following nutrients are as follows, potassium (100%), vitamin D (94.3%), choline (91.7%), vitamin E (88.5%), vitamin K (66.9%), magnesium (52.2%), calcium (44.1%), vitamin A (43%) and vitamin C (38.9%).”
NOTE: Potassium being 100% inadequate was a bit of a shock. Fortunately, we do offer Pico Potassium®, another stabilized mineral ion.
- Nutrients are deficient “because grains, fats and oils and sugars and sweeteners make up the majority of the diet in the United States.”
NOTE: More than 70% of the American diet is ultra-processed, and instead of banning it, nutrition researchers are trying to ‘make it more healthy!’
- “…anywhere from 50-75% of the population is estimated to be magnesium deficient.”
NOTE: I say about 80%, but I’ll quote DiNicolantonio at 75%.
- “Certain food processing methods, like refining oils and grains, remove even more magnesium. Refining oils eliminates all magnesium…Refining grains, rice, and wheat decreases the magnesium content by 80-90%, and refining sugar decreases the magnesium content by 95-100%.”
NOTE: There is a huge push against vegetable seed oils (sunflower, safflower, soy, canola) as a significant source of toxins in our food supply.
- “Magnesium deficiency can cause immune dysfunction, as found in those with ‘XMEN syndrome.’ These individuals have a genetic defect in transporting magnesium into their immune cells, which is thought to contribute to their increased risk of upper respiratory tract infections, sinusitis, uncontrolled Epstein-Barr virus replication, lymphoma, autoimmune diseases, and reduced immunity.”
NOTE: This genetic example of what can happen when magnesium doesn’t get into immune cells is validation of its benefits.
- “Magnesium deficiency reduces the cytotoxicity of natural killer cells and CD8 killer T cells. This can increase viral replication and may promote the proliferation of malignant growth.”
NOTE: Magnesium blocks the cytokine storm that was responsible for the deaths of many people with Covid.
- Magnesium deficiency promotes oxidative stress and depletes intracellular glutathione.
NOTE: Our formulas support the production of glutathione with their precursors’ riboflavin [B2] and methionine in ReAline® and, of course, our ReMag®.
- “Intracellular magnesium plays a key role in immune functioning against pathogens, and magnesium supplementation may reverse immune dysfunction.”
- “Lower serum magnesium increases thrombotic risk, which makes it important surrounding COVID-19, which increases thrombotic risk.”
NOTE: The ionized magnesium testing that our company is supporting in university research will give us even more evidence of the importance of magnesium.
- In the body…magnesium has anti-thrombotic effects and reduces mortality in pulmonary thromboembolism. This suggests that magnesium is a natural anticoagulant.
NOTE: One way magnesium does this is likely through its ability to solubilize calcium and direct it to the bones. Otherwise, calcium can act as a clotting agent.
- Magnesium supplementation improves fasting blood glucose in people with diabetes and glucose tolerance in those who are at a high risk of diabetes. Magnesium deficiency has been implicated in reduced pancreatic beta-cell function, reduced DNA repair capacity, insulin resistance, cardiovascular disease, type-2 diabetes, osteoporosis, hyperglycemia, and hyperinsulinemia.
NOTE: All of these are important for preventing and treating diabetes.
- “Magnesium deficiency promotes symptoms of depression and anxiety. Supplementing magnesium may be helpful for anxiety symptoms. Magnesium deficiency induces anxiety and HPA axis dysfunction. Magnesium regulates neurotransmitters and improves neurological health. It may protect against neurodegeneration and neurological disorders. Magnesium can stabilize mood in bipolar disorder and mania. Magnesium promotes relaxation and stress relief. Magnesium is needed to create serotonin in the brain, which promotes relaxation and wellbeing. It also supports the function of GABA, which is the primary inhibitory neurotransmitter.
- Magnesium helps muscles to relax by reducing calcium influx. Calcium promotes muscle contraction and tightness, whereas magnesium counteracts this process.
- Magnesium also promotes sleep efficiency, onset, and quality.
DiNicolantonio then says, “Unfortunately, it is one of the hardest nutrients to get from just whole foods because of soil depletion and food processing. On top of that, stress, insulin resistance, exercise, sweating, metabolic syndrome, and environmental factors can deplete magnesium further by activating the sympathetic nervous system. This creates a vicious cycle that depletes magnesium even more because the more stressed out you are, the more magnesium you need to deal with it.”
The Salt Fix
The next section of the chapter discusses the health benefits of salt, which I found quite fascinating. DiNicolantonio wrote a book called The Salt Fix, so he’s up on the latest salt research. I realized another benefit of our ReMag®—magnesium—because it’s derived from magnesium chloride.
DiNicolantonio wrote, “Salt is used by our body to fight infections. Salt is composed of two essential minerals, sodium and chloride. However, chloride steals the show when it comes to immune function. Chloride is used by our body to make hydrochloric acid, helping to form stomach acid for killing pathogens and absorbing nutrients that are important for a healthy immune system. If you didn’t have stomach acid, you wouldn’t absorb many nutrients, and you would be flooded with infections. Thus, you can thank salt and the chloride that comes with it for these functions. Neutrophils also secrete something called hypochlorous acid, which is the salt of hypochlorite (hypochlorite being the active component in bleach). Hypochlorous acid is secreted by neutrophils to kill pathogens and chloride is used in its formation. Thus, chloride is used to kill infections, both in the stomach and by our immune cells, and our body can’t make chloride, i.e., we need to get it by eating salt. Chloride is also used to form taurine chloramine which helps calm inflammatory cytokine storms. In fact, after neutrophils have used hypochlorous acid to kill infections, taurine chloramine is used to clean up the inflammation.”
NOTE: I knew some of the above, but not all of them in this wonderful detail. It’s why I tell you to add a good sea salt to your drinking water. But now I’m even more impressed with ReMag® coming from magnesium chloride because the process to stabilize magnesium ions also stabilizes the chloride part of the compound and gives the above benefits.
The full title of Dr. DiNicolantonio’s book is The Immunity Fix: Strengthen Your Immune System, Fight Off Infections, Reverse Chronic Disease and Live a Healthier Life.
Carolyn Dean MD ND
The Doctor of the Future
