Recovery From Depression Using Magnesium Treatment

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Rapid Recovery From Depression Using Magnesium Treatment

 

 

Glutamate Toxicity

Adverse effects sometimes occur in people who eat foods containing

monosodium glutamate (sometimes called the Chinese restaurant

syndrome). None of

us should ever eat foods or drugs containing substantial amounts of

(monosodium)

glutamate, or we must greatly increase our magnesium intake at the

same time to

help detoxify additive glutamate. Although the side effects from

aspartate is

similar, it is not as well considered [with the exception of

aspartame (good

link for FDA-Monsanto hanky-panky) and a link between Gulf War

Syndrome and

aspartame ingestion], perhaps because they are not used as

extensively in foods.

Glutamates are naturally found in cheese, milk, meat, peas,

mushrooms, tomatoes,

and soy sauce. Canned vegetables, caned soups and other processed

foods often

have additive glutamate (L-glutamic acid plus the toxic form D-

glutamic acid) to

enhance their flavor. Glutamates and aspartates are also in some

mineral dietary

supplements (including magnesium), and are often

referred to as " amino acid chelates " . We must avoid these, because

they are in

so many foods that their accumulative effects can be quite severe.

They show

their toxic effects from minutes to a day after ingestion making it

difficult to

determine a cause-and-effect relationship unless one is aware. If

you have some

of these symptoms from time to time, check back in your memory and

see if you

can identify the source(s) of glutamate. According to the Truth In

Labeling

Campaign, adverse effects of additive glutamate ingestion are dose

dependent and

may include:

Cardiac

Arrhythmia

Atrial fibrillation

Tachycardia

Rapid heartbeat

palpitations

Slow heartbeat

Angina

Extreme rise or drop in blood pressure

Circulatory

Swelling

Gastrointestinal

Diarrhea

Nausea/vomiting

Stomach cramps

Irritable bowel

Swelling of hemorrhoids and/or anus area

Rectal bleeding

Bloating

Muscular

Flu-like achiness

Joint pain

Stiffness

Neurological

Depression

Mood swings

Rage reactions

Migraine headache

Dizziness

Light-headedness

Loss of balance

Disorientation

Mental confusion

Anxiety

Panic attacks

Hyperactivity

Behavioral problems in children

Attention deficit disorders

Lethargy

Sleepiness

Insomnia

Numbness or paralysis

Seizures

Sciatica

Slurred speech

Chills and shakes

Shuddering

Visual

Blurred vision

Difficulty focusing

Pressure around eyes

Respiratory

Asthma

Shortness of breath

Chest pain

Tightness in the chest

Runny nose

Sneezing

Urological / Genital

Swelling of the prostate

Swelling of the vagina

Vaginal spotting

Frequent urination

Nocturia

Skin

Hives (internal and/or external)

Rash

Mouth lesions

Temporary tightness or partial paralysis (numbness or tingling)of

the skin

 

Flushing

Extreme dryness of the mouth

Face swelling

Tongue swelling

Bags under eyes

 

You will find " free glutamate " in one form or another in almost all

processed or manufactured food as a flavor enhancer. Other names for

glutamate

include: monosodium glutamate (MSG), calcium caseinate, sodium

caseinate,

textured protein, natural flavoring, yeast food, autolyzed yeast,

hydrolyzed

protein, hydrolyzed vegetable protein, yeast extract, hydrolyzed

yeast, natural

chicken or turkey flavoring, other spices, and modified food starch.

(NOTE: A

list of glutamate aliases suitable for taping to the refrigerator

and using at

the grocery store to purchase non-glutamate containing foods is

presented here.)

Food manufacturers can use a reduced amount of a food product and

some cheap

glutamate while getting a big taste enhancement and saving a lot of

money.

Unfortunately, about 30 percent of the population will experience

some adverse

reaction when they use this substance at the dosages available in

food products.

 

Here are disorders that are also caused, worsened or aggravated by

excessive

glutamates from the MSGTruth.org site. MSG and Addiction, MSG and

Alcoholism,

MSG & Allergy, MSG and A.L.S., MSG and Alzheimer's, MSG and Asthma,

MSG and

Atrial Fibrillation, MSG and Autism, MSG and Blindness, MSG and

Celiac Sprue,

MSG and Depression, MSG and Diabetes, MSG and Dizziness, MSG and

Epilepsy, MSG

and Fibromyalgia, MSG and Heat Stroke, MSG and High Blood Pressure,

MSG and

Hypoglycemia, MSG and Hypothyroidism, Irritable Bowel syndrome, MSG

and

Inflammation, MSG and Migraine, MSG and MS, MSG and Myopia, MSG and

Obesity, MSG

and Pituitary Tumors, MSG and Rage/Panic Disorder, MSG and Rosacea,

MSG and

Sulfite Sensitivity, MSG and Tinnitus and MSG and Sleeplessness.

Supposedly, a natural glutamate antagonist is the structurally

similar

amino acid L-theanine. I am not nearly as enthusiast about L-

theanine as many,

but I will complete the record as follows. The similarity enables L-

theanine

(L-Glutamic acid-ã-monoethylamide) to physically block glutamate,

thus

preventing calcium ion induced hyperexcitability. Although

researchers aren't

positive how theanine works yet, they theorize that theanine blocks

the NMDA

receptor which is the doorway that glutamate uses to enter cells.

Theanine is

known to increase GABA (Gamma-Amino-Butyric Acid), an important

inhibitory

neurotransmitter. Because of the similar structure, theanine can

also fit in

this doorway, blocking access to glutamate. But, although it can fit

in the

doorway, theanine does not have the same effect on the cell as

glutamate does.

Rather than causing damage, theanine acts like a shield against

damage. Theanine

is the active ingredient in green tea. The Japanese have used

enormous

amounts of MSG for many years to improve taste of poor quality food,

but they

offset its toxic effects with green tea. In 1964, Japan approved

theanine's use

in all food, except baby food. In Japan, you can buy over 50

different food

items that contain theanine. Japanese soft drinks are spiked with

the relaxant,

and it has been put into chewing gum. The tranquilizing effects of

theanine

definitely are not imaginary. Theanine readily crosses the blood-

brain barrier

of humans and exerts subtle changes in biochemistry. An increase in

brain alpha

waves (resulting in an increase in wakeful relaxation) has been

documented, and

the effect has been compared to getting a massage or taking a hot

bath. And,

unlike tranquilizing drugs (including kava-kava, valerian and St.

John's wort),

it doesn't interfere with the ability to either think or exercise

good

judgement. It does not sedate, as demonstrated by no change in brain

theta waves

upon administration. It does not help one doze or fall

asleep, unless the person is excited or hyper. By shutting down

the " worry "

mode, L-theanine increases concentration and focuses thought. This

is the

concept behind the Japanese tea ceremony which causes a person to

focus on the

moment. Dosage is reported to be 100 mg 1 to 4 times per day.

Consider this: the

risk of mortality for Japanese women who practice tea ceremony is

half of other

Japanese women. The Japanese are already the longest-lived people on

earth.

Interestingly, L-theanine is also reported to enhance the effects of

cancer

chemotherapy and reduce side effects by blocking glutamate. It may

also helps

block toxic effects of excess caffeine. Here is a search

for " glutamate " ,

" toxicity " and " Japanese " . Since we are so often exposed to excess

free

glutamate, we must learn more about dealing with overdoses of

glutamate. Is

L-theanine helpful for depressives? If we are stressed, hyperexcited

or too

anxious, maybe. If not, it does absolutely nothing. It does not

react with

tranquilizers or other drugs, at least no adverse reactions have

been reported.

Is it expensive in the U.S.? Yes, its retail price is over three

times the price

of gold, unless one purchases it in kilogram lots of pure powder,

which is about

one thousand dollars ($1 per gram). Is it worth it? I don't think so.

Back to magnesium and taurine, supplementation has been used

effectively

as an antidote to nearly all, or all, of glutamate's side effects.

Magnesium

does not reduce glutamate sensitivity or toxicity, although taurine

does. This

is another reason I have switched from magnesium glycinate to

magnesium taurate.

 

A 1995 report from the Federation of American Societies for

Experimental

Biology (FASEB), an independent body of scientists, reported to the

Food and

Drug Administrations (FDA) that temporary adverse reactions

(headaches,

perceived heart palpitations and gastrointestinal discomfort) after

consuming 3

grams or more of glutamate are likely. Parmesan cheese, a food with

one of the

highest levels of naturally occurring glutamate (and calcium),

contains about

1.3 grams of free glutamate per 100 grams. Ripe tomatoes are also

high in

glutamates. People with severe, poorly controlled asthma, in

addition to being

prone to the above symptoms, will suffer worsening of asthmatic

symptoms after

consuming as little as 0.5 grams MSG. Consequently, we have two or

three major

reasons to avoid parmesan cheese. Other foods with even greater

amounts of

glutamate and side effects caused by them are listed here. A

google.com search

for " glutamates " is here.

Remember my strong admonition to " NEVER USE MAGNESIUM GLUTAMATE " ?

Here

is why. One gram of magnesium is attached to 15 grams of glutamate

to make 16

grams of chemical magnesium glutamate (more properly termed

Monomagnesium

di-L-glutamate tetrahydrate). That amount of glutamate is over 5

times the level

considered problematic by the FASEB, and clearly a severe health

hazard to us.

Yet the Congress allows glutamates in dietary supplements through

the Dietary

Supplement Health and Education Act of 1994, apparently without

regard to safety

for us (depressives).

Glutamates are generally defined as salts of glutamic acids, and have

been shown to be potent nerve toxins in laboratory cell cultures.

Glutamates can

cause a nerve to swell 90 seconds after contact. The mechanism for

this is not

entirely clear, but it is generally thought that exposure to

glutamates causes a

calcium influx in the nerve cell. According to Dr. John Olney, a

psychiatrist at

Washington University in St.Louis, " Over twenty years ago glutamate

was shown to

cause brain damage to infant animals. Since then, it has become

increasingly

evident that glutamate and closely related substances are

neurotoxins that can

cause human neurodegenerative diseases. " As mentioned previously,

MSG in

combination with aspartame can be especially damaging. Not only may

glutamates

and aspartates cause degenerative nerve damage in adults, but there

is growing

evidence that the immature brain in children is more vulnerable than

the brain

of an adult since nerve myelination has not

progressed very far. The glutamates that create this damage were

also once

added to baby food which incredibly damages the still-forming brain

in children.

The Food and Drug Administration agreed that one chemical,

monosodium glutamate

(MSG), should not be added to infant foods. Food manufacturers

removed MSG and

added three different related excitotoxins to replace the MSG. These

chemicals

are extremely dangerous to a forming brain, yet they are still added

to infant

processed food products, because they promote good taste and help

insure that

the infant will eat his processed food. Wait a minute! Is " processed

food " an

oxymoron?

What are we to do? We are being flooded in excess glutamates and

calcium

from processed foods, where they kill our brain cells. The blood-

brain barrier

is simply unable to cope with the excesses of our " modern " American

diet. Mark

Leigton et al. point out that excess glutamate is more poisonous

than cyanide to

neurons, even though glutamate is absolutely required in low

concentrations for

most neuronal activities. The glutamate-induced elevated calcium

over activate a

number of enzymes, including protein kinase C, calcium/cadmodulin-

dependent

protein kinase II, phospholipases, proteases, phosphatases, nitric

oxide

synthase, endonucleases, and ornithine decarboxylase. Some of these

enzymes can

also produce positive feedback loops to accelerate the downward

spiral toward

neuronal death. Activation of phospholipase A, for example, generates

platelet-activating factors and arachidonic acid and its metabolites.

Platelet-activating factor directly contributes to the excitotoxic

cascade by increasing glutamate release. Arachidonic acid inhibits

reuptake of

glutamate from the synaptic space, leading to further activation of

glutamate

receptors and more arachidonic acid formation. Increased arachidonic

acid levels

form oxygen free radicals, which activate phospholipase A, leading

to more

arachidonic acid formation. These enzymes and the generated feedback

loops

rapidly lead to neuronal self-digestion by protein breakdown, free

radical

formation, and lipid peroxidation.

To my way of thinking, this is like saying that excess (spilled)

gasoline

is hazardous to a car. One match and " ka-boom! " the whole thing is

gone. Long

ago the Environmental protection Agency prohibited spilling gasoline

during

refueling cars at service stations. In some states (California),

they won't even

let gasoline fumes into the air during refueling. Yet the Food and

Drug

Administration is prohibited by law (DSHEA) from wiping up excess

neurotoxins

more dangerous than cyanide. In fact, glutamates are encouraged and

are found

(in one form or another using aliases) in most processed foods. You

will be

fascinated reviewing the neuological graphics and astonishing

glutamate toxicity

material by Leighton et al. in their article " Pictorial Review of

Glutamate

Excitotoxicity: Fundamental Concepts for Neuroimaging " .

Even though there has been massive public uproar, lawsuits,

controversy,

and strong anecdotal evidence of great harm caused by chemical

addition of

glutamates in our foods and drugs, the FDA considers it safe and

effective for

most people except asthmatics. Although food products containing

additive

" glutamate " are now required to be labeled, the labeling

requirements can be

easily avoided by using one of the above related compounds. No

matter what the

FDA says, glutamates are vital components of neurological function

and tossing

in extra glutamate in abnormal amounts really messes up our brains!

PERIOD!!!

Can you imagine what would happen if a mechanic tossed in a bucket

full of bolts

and nuts into a machine having moving parts? HA! No mechanic would

be fool

enough to do that! So what is the FDA's problem (beyond the

Congress)? It is

spelled: I-n b-e-d w-i-t-h t-h-e p-h-a-r-m-a-c-u-t-i-c-a-l

i-n-d-u-s-t-r-y, who just happen to make money selling drugs to treat

these symptoms. Ethics? HA!

Processed food quality and purity? HA! They gotcha sucker!

Corporations

make much more money selling inferior foods processed with

glutamates than

without it. If a food product is not in nature's wrapper, it has

been processed

by corporations, and it may contain glutamates or closely related

chemicals.

Wonder why you feel bad so often? " Take two magnesiums (aspirins)

and call me in

the morning " . Succeed! Depression is not a psychosis! High Quality

Sleep

If you have suffered depression, anxiety or any of the magnesium

deficiency mental health disorders mentioned here, you most likely

have or have

had serious, chronic sleep problems. Very often well-meaning

physicians

prescribe benzodiazepines (hypnotics) such as alprazolam (Xanax),

clonazepam

(Klonopin), diazepam (Valium) and lorazepam (Ativan) for anxiety and

insomnia.

To many people they are magic! They do promote sleep and they do

relieve

anxiety. But is this a healthy way to achieve these goals? With long-

term (more

than two weeks) high-dose use of benzodiazepines, there is an

apparent decrease

in the efficacy of GABA-A receptors, presumably a mechanism of

tolerance. When

high-dose benzodiazepines are abruptly discontinued, this " down-

regulated " state

of inhibitory transmission is unmasked, leading to characteristic

withdrawal

symptoms such as potentially serious anxiety, insomnia, autonomic

hyperactivity

and life-threatening seizures. In other words, you are really,

really hooked! Withdrawal efforts must be excruciatingly slow,

perhaps

requiring months to carefully reduce dosage to the tiniest possible

dosage, and

up to two years to become completely recovered from all side effects

of these

drugs once they have been stopped. I relied on Klonopin for sleep

for 15 years

before I realized how harmful this drug could be for me. I loved

going to sleep

with Klonopin. Each time I tried to taper off, I was overwhelmed by

side

effects. For me the scariest were cardiac palpitations, high

anxiety, serious

insomnia and many transient symptoms for which I could not find a

cause - all

because I asked a physician nearly 20 years ago for help going to

sleep? If you

have taken any of these drugs, you are most likely experiencing one

or more of

hundreds of potential side effects, and are not nearly as sick as

you think!

Please take the time to print and carefully review the huge list of

side effects

from use of these drugs at the Benzodiazepine.org site. I had

the list here, but it was many pages long and I had to resort to

linking the

site. How can anyone defend drugs that will replace simple insomnia

with much

worse long-term problems? To many people these drugs have become

drugs from

hell. If necessary during the withdrawal process, you probably can

use these

drugs with magnesium, but the effects of both the drugs and

magnesium in

inducing sleep should be considered. MOST IMPORTANT: You must seek

the advice of

a physician or pharmacist for specific instructions on safe

withdrawal from

these drugs. Good luck in finding a physician that will help you

withdraw. By

the way, your physician will probably offer you a drug to treat each

and every

one of your benzodiazepine side-effects, or you can take magnesium

and get well.

A more complete list of benzodiazepine drugs include: Alprazolam

(Xanax),

Bromazepam (Lexotan, Lexomil), Chlordiazepoxide (Librium), Clobazam

(Frisium),

Clonazepam (Klonopin, Rivotril), Clorazepate, Diazepam (Valium),

Estazolam (ProSom), Flunitrazepam (Rohypnol), Flurazepam (Dalmane),

Halazepam

(Paxipam), Ketazolam (Anxon), Loprazolam (Dormonoct), Lorazepam

(Ativan),

Lormetazepam (Noctamid), Medazepam (Nobrium), Nitrazepam (Mogadon),

Oxazepam

(Serax, Serenid, Serepax), Prazepam (Centrax), Quazepam (Doral),

Temazepam

(Restoril, Normison, Euhypnos), Triazolam (Halcion). Non-

benzodiazepines which

may have similar side effects include: Zaleplon (Sonata), Zolpidem

(Ambien,

Stilnoct), Zopiclone (Zimovane, Imovane).

How did I go off of Klonopin, and what did I experience? Briefly,

after

two years of hell, life is beginning to become normal. The following

is an

e-mail answer to a man anouncing that he was going off Klonopin

after being on

it for nine years. He wanted to know how I went off Klonopin and

what were my

expericences.

Dear Terry,

 

Congratulations on your decision!!!!!

My condolences too.

You and I have had our brains rewired to depend upon Klonopin for

many things,

sleep being one of them. Your best future depends on withdrawal I

believe.

However, this will be an extremely slow decent through hell, but

there is a

silver lining. The easy part is slowly tapering from the big doses

to the little

doses. When you finally get down to one 0.5 mg pill, the trouble

starts. You

should further taper to a half pill and stay there for a few weeks.

Then you

should taper to a 1/4 pill and stay there for a few weeks. Then you

should taper

to 1/8 pill and stay there for a few weeks.

Finally, you will decide to stop. Then, hell breaks loose and you

may think you

are ill to very ill with one or more (usually multiple) of the side

effects

mentioned on the Benzodiazepine.org site. You will be tempted to see

a physician

for one or more health issues that are clearly identifiable as

Klonopin

withdrawal symptoms. You will not trust your health. You will think

that sleep

is impossible. You will be certain that there is something wrong

with you when

you can no longer sleep. Hopefully, you will use about 400 to 500 mg

magnesium

as taurate at bedtime as a sedative. You will probably wake up after

4 to 5

hours totally relaxed and rested and ready to get up. You can get up

and putter

around the house or try to do something useful. For me, those were

the hours

that I used to write my web page.

Complete trust for your health will not occur for at least a year

and perhaps

two. That means for that year or two, you will be rather

uncomfortable and will

have many weird symptoms. IT IS JUST KLONOPIN SAYING, " MISS ME? "

Tell yourself,

" I am in withdrawal " and relax. Tell yourself again, " I am in

withdrawal " and

relax. Repeat this one hundred times. Anxiety about your health may

be more than

you can tolerate, and you will probably be very tempted to go to a

doctor for

more drugs. Please tell yourself that there is no nutritional

requirement for

drugs, but there is for magnesium. I could go on, but you get my

drift. I will

never go to a doctor again unless I am on a stretcher or need some

kind of shot,

and I get my flu shots at Wal-Mart!

Hope that helps.

George

 

In depression, high quality sleep is mandatory for recovery, but is

often

very difficult to achieve without magnesium repletion and a low

glycemic diet.

Remember that both stress and a high glycemic diet dramatically lower

intracellular magnesium and must be controlled. Had Weston's

discovery of the

sedative value of magnesium been fully utilized over the last 80

years, many

problems due to inadequate sleep (in depression or otherwise), could

have been

largely avoided. Clearly, 400 - 500 mg of ionizable magnesium at

bedtime induces

a natural, pleasant sleep unequaled in the human experience. On the

other hand,

lack of sleep is another cause of magnesium deficiency; probably due

to the

lowered amounts of growth hormone secretion, which occurs as result

of sleep

deprivation. Growth hormone is responsible for creating a substance

known as

insulin growth factor (IGF-1). IGF-1 has been found to have many

uses in the

body, but is best known for tissue repair, which occurs primarily

during sleep. Lack of sleep is often found in people with

fibromyalgia, which

is responsive to magnesium repletion. Magnesium ions regulate many

nerve

receptors, such as NMDA or 5-HT3. When inadequately regulated due to

magnesium

deficiency, those receptors cause fibromyalgia pain and increase

sleep

deprivation, further worsening magnesium deficiency. Worse, Tanabe

and others

have shown a link between sudden cardiac death from chronic fatigue

(lack of

sleep) and magnesium depletion. They hypothesized that coronary

arterial spasm

and thrombus formation occur during chronic fatigue. They found in a

small trial

that chronic sleep deprivation leads to a cellular magnesium

deficiency and an

increase in the thromboxane B2 level, thus promoting coronary

arterial spasm and

thrombus formation.

Too much carbohydrate in the diet will cause insomnia, partly

because it

interferes with magnesium. Sugar prevents magnesium from staying in

cells and

adversely alters calcium and magnesium intracellular balances,

worsening

depression too. Excess sugar, less than one might imagine, results

in severe

urinary losses of magnesium. Sometimes people on magnesium will

awaken early,

too early, perhaps 2:30 to 4:00AM, and can not get back to sleep.

This is rarely

(if ever) from " excessive " magnesium, and is much more likely to be

from

hypoglycemia induced by hyperinsulinemia. This is especially suspect

if the

pulse rate is higher than normal. Supplements of chromium and

vanadium at the

time of insomnia with higher than normal pulse rate should bring

down the pulse

rate and allow sleep to resume.

Early awakening (after about 3 to 4 hours sleep) without a high pulse

rate is type II insomnia. It is caused by calcium deficiency. This

means you

have done your job of depleting excess calcium by following a low

calcium or a

calcium depletion diet as discussed. Excess, toxic, amounts of

calcium have been

removed from the blood. This effect will usually require about a

year of

purposeful trying to deplete calcium. Consequently, if you are a

recent convert

to low calcium intake, you will not notice this effect. Many people

find that

adding small amounts of calcium, preferably as a small serving (3 to

6 FL OZ) of

ice cream, to their diet shortly before bedtime will prevent calcium

deficiency

insomnia that same night. On the other hand, difficulty in getting

to sleep is

vastly more common and is called type I insomnia, which is caused by

magnesium

deficiency. What do sleeping aids like the benzos actually do? They

mask

magnesium deficiency. For that reason alone, they should not

be used.

Most of us do things daily that adversely affect our ability to

sleep,

that when looked at in context, make little sense. For example, we

take

stimulants in the morning to get us going and sedatives in the

evening to help

us relax and sleep. We love our sweets too and we find them

everywhere, making

avoiding a high glycemic index diet difficult. Some of us also take

decongestants (Afrin Nasal Spray, Sine-Aid, Sudafed) or appetite

suppressants

such as Acutrim and Dexatrim which are strong stimulant drugs, which

should be

avoided by insomniacs. Our economy promotes the idea of more is

better and less

is counter to supporting our " way of life " . Well, perhaps that is

true, but at

what cost to us as individuals? Can we be turned on in the morning

and off at

bedtime like a machine? A machine? Do we really want to be machines?

Where did

we get the idea that we have to perform as perfectly as a well tuned

Ferrari, go

like a banshee each day and sleep like a baby each night? Somehow we

have learned this concept while growing up, most likely from our

parents,

teachers and peers. Now we are in a pickle, depressed and even burnt

out but

unable to sleep. Why? I think many of us turn on in the morning and

off at night

on demand - using drugs. Drugs? You say, " I don't use cocaine or

speed to get me

going in the morning! " No? What do you use to get going in the

morning? Caffeine

from coffee, tea or colas? Do you have to have your coffee to get

going in the

morning? How about an afternoon cup of tea or a cola? How about some

lovely

chocolates in the evening? How about 800 nicotine hits per day?

These products

sound totally benign (with the exception of smoking), but they each

share one

thing in common with the most dangerous drug in the world - crystal

methamphetamine. They are all stimulants. All of us react to

stimulants and

sedatives differently, and many people can turn on and off

successfully using

drugs. But do we all pay a price eventually? Usually. You paid the

price or you would not be reading this. Every morning you get up

have a cup of

coffee and never consider that caffeine could be building up in your

body and

keeping you from sleeping at night. Me? I have never drank a cup of

coffee in my

life and I still have trouble sleeping. I am so extremely sensitive

to caffeine

that one cup of tea or a single chocolate bar contain enough

caffeine to keep me

awake at night - for several nights! Are you hypersensitive to

caffeine too but

refuse to admit it? Most of us will not admit that uppers like

caffeine keep us

from sleeping. It is part of our lives! We depend upon our cup of

coffee, and

will not stop using this drug. DRUG? Caffeine? Yes. It is an upper

just like

crystal meth. Stimulants: caffeine and nicotine, cocaine (including

freebase,

rock, and crack), amphetamines, meth, ( " crank, speed " ), diet pills

and

decongestants all have big payoffs, such as energy, productivity,

confidence,

coping with depression and stress. Users often appear

successful and well adjusted. But we all have a stress reaction to

them. All

these drugs imitate or stimulate the production of norepinephrine or

adrenalin,

creating a " fight or flight " response, in addition to the pleasure

response.

Doesn't this sound familiar? What have I been preaching about stress

as the

ultimate cause of depression? Here we are again, depressed and

feeding that

depression with things that keep us from sleeping! Are we weird or

not! Yes, we

have become very weird in our " behavior " . Did you know that your

decongestant

was keeping you from sleeping? Better take Nyquil! How about calcium

plus

aspirin? How about: Ephedra? Aspirin Plus Caffeine (APC)? Excedrin?

Why do you

think they make Excedrin PM?

What about sleeping pills? Are they OK to use? The answer is usually

no,

not for us. Research proves over and over again that sleeping pills

are actually

the worst treatment for chronic insomnia. The reason is that

sleeping pills

merely cover up the underlying cause of the insomnia. After a while,

people

develop a tolerance to or dependency on the sleeping pill and never

really treat

the reason for the insomnia in the first place. To truly cure our

insomnia, we

need to seek medical help to receive a diagnosis and treatment for

the root

cause of the insomnia. Guess what your doctor will find as the root

cause of

your insomnia? Depression. Back to magnesium. Use of mild sedatives,

sleeping

pills or antihistamines, such as Benadryl®, to induce sleep without

magnesium in

treating depression can result in much worse problems than they

solve. On the

other hand when used as part of a magnesium repletion program, they

can work

miracles. Want me to recommend one? You might try low dose

(25 mg) Benadryl®. However, we must detoxify ourselves of stimulant

drugs such

as caffeine and nicotine first, which is something most people will

not do.

However, if you are interested in detoxifying from stimulants and

are want to

learn more, start here. Withdrawal from stimulants usually increases

depression

for a while, and a bit of 5-HTP will help as discussed in the next

paragraph and

elsewhere in this essay.

Did you know that taking a morning or afternoon nap can keep you from

sleeping at night? Researchers have found that taking a nap lasting

20 minutes

or longer will reset the biological clock, making nighttime sleep

difficult and

interrupted. Also, flying from one time zone to another,

particularly multiple

time zones, will also affect nighttime sleep patterns, because your

biological

clock is set for your origin time zone - not the destination time

zone. These

changes in your biological clock can be reset with melatonin.

However, for the

depressive, be careful with melatonin, the biochemical that

establishes our

natural sleep rhythm. Examine melatonin dietary supplement labels

carefully, and

quality melatonin products will warn: " Not for use by depressives " .

Why?

Melatonin is involved in the sleep process, why wouldn't it be

helpful?

Melatonin is a hormone (N-acetyl-5 methoxytryptamine) produced

especially at

night in the pineal gland. Its secretion is stimulated by the dark

and inhibited by light. Tryptophan is converted to serotonin and

finally

converted to melatonin. During sleep serotonin is converted to

melatonin and

during wakefulness melatonin is converted to serotonin. However, the

person with

depression may not be able to convert melatonin into serotonin

effectively and

melatonin may build up worsening depression and causing the person

to oversleep.

What to do? Supplement with both melatonin and 5-HTP, the immediate

precursor to

serotonin (vital to sleep). How much? Try using 50-mg 5-HTP, and 3-

mg melatonin.

This may help correct the problem for depressives in a wonderful

way, and allow

us to benefit from melatonin as well as benefit from the sleep

enhancing effect

of 5-HTP supplementation. How about a big glass of milk for sleep

induction? HA!

Not for depressives. However, calcium is involved with sleep

maintenance as

previously mentioned, but we usually get enough from our diets even

if we work

to eliminate toxic amounts of it as discussed

here.

As we age we produce less and less melatonin. Melatonin levels have

been

proposed to be a direct indicator of chronological age in forensics

because

melatonin production declines nearly linearly with age. Low night-

time melatonin

production is likely the main cause of insomnia in older people and

particularly

in the elderly. Normally, melatonin concentration is 6 to 12 times

higher at

night than during the day. Replenishing night-time melatonin to

youthful levels

sometimes results in restoration of youthful sleep patterns.

Melatonin

production is also inversely associated with nocturia (total urinary

output and

urinary frequency at night). Yes, total urinary production is

greatly reduced,

suggesting melatonin levels control urinary production, which

appears related to

melatonin's role in lowering night-time blood pressure. Many older

men think

that they have prostate problems because they frequently are

awakened by a

strong need to urinate, often 3 to 5 times a night. This is

another aspect of insomnia and depression that appears poorly

treated in

medicine. Melatonin nearly always cures the supposed " prostate

problem " , because

it wasn't a prostrate problem at all. Melatonin is equally effective

in women.

The time of day that melatonin is taken to prevent insomnia and

nocturia is

important, and must be determined by each person due to

individuality of

melatonin metabolism. Taking melatonin at about 10 PM is a good

starting point

in eliminating nocturia and its resulting insomnia. On the other

hand, if

melatonin is taken in the morning, night-time insomnia will likely

result,

because it will change the body's clock. If insomnia persists and

one takes an

" extra " tablet in the early hours of the morning, sleepiness may

occur during

the day for the same reason. Some researchers report that several

weeks of

treatment with melatonin may be required before insomnia and

nocturia abate,

while others report two treatments is sufficient. Rarely, it works

on the

first night, perhaps because correct dosage or timing has yet to be

established, or because too much liquid is consumed several hours

before bedtime

(in the case of nocturia). If melatonin terminates insomnia and

nocturia,

supplementation may be needed for years. As side notes, people that

work or

around electromagnetic fields (especially microwave) are often low

in melatonin,

presumably by action of the electromagnetic field on melatonin

metabolism.

Cancer treatment and prevention using melatonin has been discussed.

Succeed! Depression is not a psychosis!

There are many tried and true methods of getting to sleep that do not

involve adjusting biochemistry. These techniques involve stress and

pain

avoidance. Obviously your bedroom should be as comfortable as

possible. After

all sleeping is required to rejuvenate your entire being. A painful

night from

an uncomfortable bed is not conducive to sleep. Some people are so

calcified by

calcium-abuse that their joints and back hurt from laying down,

which likely

applies to you. As your magnesium/calcium balance improves over the

first year

of magnesium replenishment and calcium depletion, you will likely

notice that

pains associated with sleep disappear. In the meantime, good

pillows, sheets and

a firm, comfortable mattress are necessary. An " egg crate " foam pad

(as seen on

right) is often the difference between quality sleep and poor or no

sleep. They

are available at any sleep or bedding store and make poor mattresses

work like

the best mattress ever made. However, the " best "

mattress is not a stuffed mattress at all, but is an air mattress.

These two

items, " egg crate " foam pads and air mattresses are the ultimate in

sleep

equipment, and they are very inexpensive. Make bedtime as routine as

possible.

Do not oversleep in the morning (the melatonin problem). Make sure

your room is

quiet, dark (too much light = melatonin problem) and has a

comfortable

temperature that is neither too hot nor too cold. An electric

mattress pad is

often preferable over an electric blanket, because heat comes up

from below.

Listen to poetry or soft music. Your bedroom should only be used for

sleep and

sex. Sex aids sleep. Don't watch television, work, read or talk on

the phone.

Bathing your insomnia away with an Epsom salt bath often is very

helpful.

Finally, use any appropriate stress relief technique listed here.

People sometimes find that when they go off their drugs and onto

magnesium that they wake up after about 5 hours (often about 3 to

4AM) and can't

get back to sleep. If sugars have been kept low, calories restricted

generally,

adequate chromium and vanadium ingested, nocturia controlled,

melatonin taken,

stress relieved, comfortable sleeping arrangements provided, then is

all than

can be done? Why no sleep? You are no longer under so much stress

that you need

your previous amount of sleep. Get up and do something productive or

enjoyable,

read a book, listen to music or find a second job! Enjoy your time

awake,

because sleep is too much like death to enjoy sleeping more than

necessary. With

magnesium repletion, you don't need as much sleep. Or, you can have

a nice bowl

of ice cream before bedtime and sleep a few more hours than normal.

Alternatively, you can take another 400 mg of magnesium and hope you

make it to

work on time without diarrhea. Fibromyalgia, Chronic Fatigue

Syndrome and Magnesium

Fibromyalgia, (severe muscle cramps or pain in leg, foot, neck,

chest,

back, soft tissue) and chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) appear nearly

always

symptoms of moderate magnesium deficiency coupled with excess calcium

accumulation and possibly low potassium. For example, Shealy, et al.

showed in

1992 that 80 percent of more than 200 patients with depression

and/or chronic

pain had magnesium serum levels below normal here. Magnesium malate

has a

history of use in treating fibromyalgia. Many articles concern low

magnesium

levels in chronic fatigue syndrome and low magnesium in

fibromyalgia. Also,

there is much interest in potassium problems in CFS. Although I am

quite certain

that fibromyalgia is primarily a low magnesium problem, I now

believe that CFS

is a low magnesium and low potassium problem. This seems to be a

novel approach

to treating CFS, but it may have much more merit than anyone could

have

predicted as few as 5 years ago. See the discussion in this page

concerning

foods and salts that can be used to increase potassium here, and do

a search

generally in this page for " potassium " to learn about its hazards

and benefits.

Potassium is the most prevalent metal inside cells at about 70% of

the mineral

content of cells, and plays vital life- and health-sustaining roles.

See this

page for a comprehensive discussion of treatments and causes of CFS.

As

previously mentioned, magnesium regulates many nerve receptors, such

as NMDA or

5-HT3. When inadequately regulated due to magnesium deficiency,

those receptors

cause fibromyalgia pain and increase sleep deprivation, further

worsening

magnesium deficiency. Fibromyalgia and chronic fatigue syndrome are

often not

diagnosed by internists, rather they conduct multiple expensive

tests to rule

out other possibilities. These painful symptoms are always

predictive of major

health problems in the future including cardiac trouble and

depression if not

treated with ionizable magnesium at about 200 mg three to four

times a day. However, menstrual cramps are symptoms of zinc

deficiency, not

magnesium deficiency. Read more in this essay about how calcium

toxicity and

magnesium deficiency cause fibromyalgia here, and a bit about the

problem of

sleep in fibromyalgia here. Doesn't it seem more reasonable to you,

the patient,

to try something nutritional before spending a fortune on expensive

tests? You

don't believe me? How about believing a MIT researcher and his

extensive

research? If you wait for your doctor to make this diagnosis, I hope

you have

plenty of money or really good insurance. On the other hand, see

what one of the

best CFS physicians in the world, Dr. Sarah Myhill in Great Britain

does for

fatigue here. Succeed! Depression is not a psychosis! Red Eyes, Dry

Mouth, Dry Eyes

Scleritis (sometimes painful, but always severe redness in the white

part

of eye) is a disease usually of unknown origin, but has been

documented in

arthritis, and several infectious diseases. Scleritis can be

recurring, and in

my case, the red eye syndrome lasted for about a week and reoccurred

each 4 to 6

weeks. No drug was effective in treating this eye condition, but it

did respond

slightly to magnesium sulfate eye drops. On the other hand, taurine

is known to

be vital for eye function and much information is available on this

matter,

particularly in macular degeneration. However, no one has documented

the effect

of dietary or topical taurine on scleritis. Severe scleritis is an

important eye

disease because it has been found to occur in people in the last 5

years of

their life. Since I first developed scleritis in my left eye in

1999, by the

fall of 2003, I was wondering how that would work out! Upon

switching from

magnesium glycinate to magnesium taurate last summer, my

only incident of scleritis was much milder. I reasoned that the only

real

change that I had made was to greatly increase my taurine intake.

Being somewhat

a curious George, I made a saturated solution of taurine and dropped

a few drops

into my eye at bedtime. The next morning the redness was totally

absent.

Following up on topical taurine by using dietary supplements of

taurine and the

eye-drops on occasion, my scleritis did not return for several

months. Recently,

I stopped dietary taurine, and the scleritis returned the following

morning. To

prevent scleritis in my present condition, 6 grams of pure taurine

are taken

with each meal and at bedtime. I have found some evidence that

intestinal yeast

overgrowth will cause the kidneys to be unable to recycle taurine,

with taurine

being lost into the urine. Yeast overgrowth of the intestines is

also blamed for

many of the arthritic-like complaints often found with scleritis.

Consequently,

an effective treatment for Candida yeast should

prevent scleritis, and I have found that coconut oil is also

effective,

particularly when used with taurine. Taurine in these doses should

not be

considered nutritional in nature, but may be considered medicinal.

The human

body only contains 70 grams of taurine, and supplements of 24 grams

per day seem

much too high.

Dry mouth and dry eyes are some of the most irritating side effects

of

many prescription anti-depressant drugs (and some other drugs). Dry

mouth and

dry eyes are usually symptoms of magnesium (and possibly potassium

and taurine)

deficiency. Dry mouth and dry eyes are very easily treated with oral

ionizable

magnesium - the nutrient your body is likely starving for. Use of

synthetic

tears and other simplistic wetting techniques including chewing gum

are not

solving the nutritional deficits that cause the problem. Magnesium

and high

potassium content foods such as bananas, potatoes and other whole

foods are

greatly preferable to drugs. I have found that my health improved

greatly simply

by using balanced potassium/sodium salts (Morton's Lite Salt) rather

than by

using plain table salt (sodium chloride). Use of plain table salt

can easily

lead to imbalances between potassium and sodium. Dry mouth can also

cause dental

caries. Although calcium is necessary as a component of teeth,

it does not play the major role in preventing dental caries, as is

popularly

supposed, but magnesium does. Magnesium is mandatory for strong

teeth and bones,

and without it or with inadequate amounts, caries form. In fact,

dental caries

can be completely prevented for years with a high magnesium diet.

Dry mouth and

dry eyes, particularly when coupled with insomnia often precede other

better-known magnesium deficiency symptoms. If promptly treated with

magnesium

more serious magnesium deficiency disorders such as anxiety and

depression can

be prevented. Succeed! Depression is not a psychosis! Stress Relief

Techniques

Perhaps the obvious needs to be stated. Stress hurts us if we don't

know

how to get relief. We have let stress hurt us and build up in us by

not taking

affirmative action at the right time. Stress has built up in us

until we became

seriously ill and magnesium depleted. There are many stress coping

skills that

we have not yet mastered, or we would not be ill. Environmental,

physical,

metabolic and psychological stressors are around us every day. We

can try to

limit these stressors and/or we can learn to deal with them.

Metabolic stress

can be directly dealt with using magnesium, and limiting our intake

of calcium.

Physical and environmental traumas happen. We can plan to deal with

some of

these by taking extra magnesium before hand, or immediately

afterward.

Psychological stressors can be dealt with magnesium too. However,

forgiveness is

key to overcoming the " fight or flight " stress reaction to

aggravation, anger

and anxiety caused by other people. A certain amount of pain is

inevitable in life, but suffering is optional. Do not let anger get

you down!

Personally, I really like magnesium taurate as an " aspirin for the

emotions " .

Include in your stress relief tool kit:

Consider others: If you think you have problems, then you need to

see this

picture of me having a really bad day!

Consider your problems in relationship to the problems of others.

How do

others handle their problems? Don't be so hard on yourself when you

screw up.

Heaven knows, these guys didn't!

However, be aware that too big a screw-up is likely to have serious

repercussions, like this cartoon of Bush leadership in Iraq shows.

Walk: Walking is the number one choice for stress relief. Take a

walk in the

park or on the beach. Nature can be very relaxing and is so easy on

the eyes.

Feel the breeze lift your hair and gently stroke your face. Some

researchers

have reported that walking increases temporarily magnesium in blood

serum.

Recreate: Go to a gym, or do a sport such as tennis, hiking, golf or

running.

 

Ride a horse, therapeutically, not like this girl unless you are an

expert.

Learn the joy of simple pleasures, like my horses did when they

discovered

snow. Watch this short movie of my horses' first joyous experience

in snow!

Swim: Swimming with its obligatory regular slow breathing is

excellent for

relaxation.

Breathing exercises: Breath in slowly and deeply through your nose,

then

slowly breath out through your mouth. Imagine all of the tension

flow out of you

as you exhale. Try this while you are walking or swimming for a

double whammy on

stress.

Massage and aromatherapy: Let someone take care of you. It feels so

gooood.

Smoking: Cigarette usage is stupid; but smoking promotes slow,

conscious

inhaling and slow, conscious exhaling, which is probably the reason

smokers

believe that cigarettes are relaxing.

Disciplines: Yoga, Meditation, Tai Chi, Dancing, Bioenergetics

Classes all

have utility in stress reduction.

Credit management: Destroy all of your credit cards. Do not live on

credit.

Pay them off or declare bankruptcy and get an honest, legal clean

start.

Have fun: Fun is not a dirty word. Play! Do something you used to do

as a

child or long ago before you had all of the commitments. Find your

old electric

train set and play with it. Or, go to a carnival, circus, water

recreation park,

and while you are there eat some cotton candy.

Get busy: Do something you like, such as shopping or go to a movie or

dancing.

Treat yourself: Buy a new outfit, a haircut, an all day spa. If you

are a

handy guy, buy some new power tools and make something for someone.

Talk it out: Clergy, counselors and psychologists listen well.

Knowing

someone else understands and hears you without judging you is

valuable.

Sleep more: Four hundred mg of magnesium (as magnesium taurate)

taken an hour

before bedtime will give you the best sleep you have ever had. Lack

of sleep

leads to stress, creating a vicious cycle. More sleep can leave you

stress free.

 

Eat right: Eat a well-balanced meal, with plenty of fresh cold-water

fish,

nuts, fruits and vegetable. When you shop for food, do not buy

anything that is

not a fresh, whole food. Avoid the SAD Western diet. Avoid the

processed food

isles. Forget the Twinkies, white bread, cookies, canned food, and

literally all

processed foods. You would be surprised at how much weight can be

lost simply by

not eating processed foods, which are depleted of magnesium and

other shelf-life

damaging minerals. Your appetite will become lessened and your

stomach flatter

when on a high magnesium diet. Loosing weight with a high magnesium

diet is

usually easy and natural. Avoid foods high in calcium for a while.

Avoid brain poisons: Avoid foods and drinks that contain Aspartame or

monosodium glutamate (ask about foods at restaurants, and read

labels). They are

excitotoxins and can cause or worsen depression. To satisfy a sweet

tooth, and

avoid aggravating depression, always use Stevia, the ultra safe,

herbal, top

secret, super-sweetener that the FDA doesn't want you to know about.

Stretch: You can feel the stress leave your body.

Take time for yourself: Don't keep giving and giving. Take time for

yourself.

Get away. Take a trip. Take a vacation.

Simplify, simplify, simplify! Simplifying and prioritizing is

essential to

stress relief, particularly for those of us that tend to be a bit on

the

bi-polar or ADHA side. Lest we run around in circles looking like

crazy people!

Get closer to God: Biblical faith in our Father is an enormous stress

reliever; cast your cares on Him that can handle them. Read Psalm 66

and 96.

Read and understand the truth and wonderment of reality: Read the

Book of

Tao.

Above all, be a lover of truth: Be like the Sufi.

Focus, visual relaxation: Close your eyes and imagine you are

somewhere nice

that you choose such as on a deserted island walking along the shore

or skiing

on a snow covered slope with the cold brisk wind in your face or

whatever you

like to do.

Positive attitude: Look at things in a more positive and forgiving

light.

Always think of something positive when you would prefer to dwell on

the

negative.

TV as poison: Flip the channel on bad news on TV and other media.

Don't

watch it. It has nothing to do with your life. Watch the PAX TV, The

Discovery

channels, including the Learning, Travel, Animal Planet, Health and

History

channels, Horse TV, religious or science channels. Avoid the hard

metal rock

music channels with their songs of twisted minds.

Imagination: Don't let your imagination run away with you. Never

dwell on

negative things that could happen, such as disasters or tragedies.

Imagining the

worst often causes it to occur. Ask and ye shall receive!

Smile and laugh more: Think up a joke and tell it to a friend or

spouse.

Laughter is the Best Medicine. Laugh at other peoples' jokes, but not

disingenuously. Laughter is a medical necessity. Perhaps because

laughter is

beneficial to your immune system too. Here is a joke that I recently

dreamed in

my sleep. There was a Viet Nam vet that had been totally insane for

30 years

since being held in a 4-foot bamboo tiger cage by the Viet Cong. One

day a young

V.A. doctor gave him some new medicine. The vet immediately jumped

up saying he

was totally well! All of the insanity was gone! He was absolutely

thrilled. When

he asked what was in the medicine, the doctor said, " Extract of

bamboo " . Moral?

Magnesium allows one to remember dreams.

Enjoy some black humor. Remember Gloria Gaynor's song " I will

survive " ? It

was a 1979 disco classic. It is now available on the web as a spoof

called

" Alien Song " , which is a little mpeg that has a surprise ending. An

ending that

is predictive of all future endings, but not an ending for today.

Get organized. Try organizing your closet, office or garage.

Lighten up your clothing color scheme: Whites and yellows and light

blues

with neat patterns are proven to be happy colors, as opposed to

reds, blacks,

brown, gray and dark blues.

Don't let people get to you: Most people have problems and they

sometimes try

taking it out on others. It's not your problem, so why accept it as

yours? It's

garbage and useless baggage. Dump it where it belongs.

Sex: Sex is a positive stressor, which relieves negative stress.

Read: Get caught in a love story or in a " who done it " story, escape

for a

little while.

Plan for your period: Zinc prevents menstrual cramps and bloating.

Magnesium

is important in treating PMS.

Find your passion in life: Get a hobby like painting, gardening,

writing,

cooking, etc.

Work smarter not harder: Leave stressful professions and their

baggage

behind, get a real life.

Illegal street drugs. Bliss for a moment, pain and crime for life.

Only the

most stupid, foolish and dying do street drugs. There is only one

time in life

when cocaine is appropriate.

Cults: Run for your life. They only immerse you with their own

problems and

agendas, which make your problems seem insignificant.

Psychiatrists: Bash your psychiatrist with magnesium . Why? Most

have become

pharmaceutical company " drug pushers " in disguise. They are not to

blame for not

knowing about magnesium and its curative powers because no

pharmaceutical

company promotes magnesium because it is not patentable. Magnesium

adoption into

psychiatry would devastate the lucrative pharmaceutical company anti-

depressant

drug trade. After ruling out diseases and hormonal disorders that

can cause

depression, trying magnesium taurate, stress relief and seeing a

nutritionist

and a psychologist before seeing a psychiatrist seems reasonable to

me.

Psychiatrists would be much more valuable if they learned about

magnesium and

its related brain biochemistry, than prescribing SSRIs which act

mainly as

placebos. The first thing my psychiatrist did when I told him about

magnesium

curing me, was call a poison control center hot-line! He had no

idea! And your

shrink won't have a clue either. Rather than congratulating you on

your progress on magnesium, he/she will likely ridicule you and

possibly

intimidate you to get you hooked on drugs. In my opinion,

prescribing powerful

psychoactive drugs having major side effects for depression, bi-

polar, and ADHD

and related disorders without prescribing magnesium taurate to treat

magnesium

depletion masquerading as these mental illness will someday be

recognized and

considered malpractice. Perhaps other mental conditions are also

nutrient

deficiencies. Perhaps consideration should be given to whether

psychiatry is

even a legitimate medical field. Don Weitz has listed 25 good

reasons why

psychiatry must be abolished.

Visit " stress relief strategy " web sites: Simply learning about

stress relief

strategies that others have learned the hard way is helpful. Succeed!

Depression is not a psychosis!

Understress, Optimal Stress, and Overstress

To this point I seem to have implied that " stress " is bad and

harmful to

health. Please forgive me because that is incorrect. It is

only " overstress "

that is very harmful to health and can cause magnesium depletion

leading to

anxiety, heart attacks, depression and death (self inflicted or

heart attack).

People require a certain level of stress in their lives for

happiness. Just as a

violin's strings must have the correct tension to sound perfect,

people must

have the correct tension (stress) too. Although " understress " rarely

leads to

illness from magnesium depletion, it too can be a life-threatening

problem.

Understressed people tend to be working and living well below their

potential or

desired life style thus resulting in boredom, apathy, and other

characteristics,

some of which are shown below. Optimal stress is the amount of

stress that leads

to a full life, filled with challenge, excitement, satisfaction and

pleasure. As

discussed throughout this page, it is

" overstress " that causes magnesium depletion health problems.

UnderstressedOptimal StressOverstressedBoredom Exhilaration

InsomniaOverqualified for workHigh motivationIrritabilityApathyMental

alertnessAccidentsErratic, interrupted sleepHigh

energyAlcoholismIrritabilityRealistic analysis of

problemsAbsenteeismDecrease in

motivationImproved memory and recallChange in appetiteAccidentsSharp

perceptionApathyAlcoholismCalmness under pressureStrained

relationshipsAbsenteeismGood relationshipsPoor judgmentChange in

appetiteAccuracyIncreased errorsLethargyHappinessLack of

clarityNegativityCan do

attitudeIndecisivenessLoneliness, unwantedAppreciates

solitudeWithdrawalDullnessCooperativeFeeling of fallingIncreased

errorsDedicationLoss of perspectiveSeeks distractionsIn

harmonyDiminished memory

and recallLow muscle toneReady to react musclesTense, strained

musclesAnxiety,

depression, suicideContent, happy fulfilled livesAnxiety,

depression, suicide

As we examine the above table from the 1981 book " Stress/Unstress " by

Keith W. Sehnert, MD, we can see that people can have stress

characteristics

that are listed in both the overstressed and understressed columns.

Alcoholism,

appetite problems, irritability, sleep problems, anxiety, depression

and suicide

occur in people not optimally stressed. Does alcoholism in the

understressed and

overstressed result in loss of magnesium? Yes; in 60 to 80%% of

alcoholics, and

it is usually accompanied by liver or kidney damage. Current belief

is ethanol

acts generally in the brain by reducing free magnesium levels, and

directly at

hydrophobic sites on brain proteins to cause acute intoxication by

potentiation

of inhibitory GABAA receptors, inhibition of excitatory NMDA-type

glutamate

receptors, 5-HT3 and adenosine receptors, and 5-HT uptake sites,

according to

University of Texas Tech pharmacologist, Peter J. Syapin. How does

intelligence,

loneliness, education, sexuality, and physical,

mental and spiritual health relate to our ability to handle stress?

These

parameters definitely influence our ability or inability to handle

stress.

Perhaps educating a person would shift his paradigms in beneficial

ways, by

allowing him/her to be employed in more interesting work, and/or

associate with

a more enthusiastic, happy, loving or spiritual group of people. On

the other

hand, over-education for a job would usually result in an

understressed

situation and the person could become bored. Alternately, excessive

education

and reduction to logic can leave a person wondering who he/she is.

Such concept

of self alienation through education was memorialized by the British

rock band

Supertramp in their amazing " The Logical Song " 0.54MB.wav 5.9MB.wma

in the late

1970s. Follow the words here.

Boredom, a major characteristic of understress, causes people to seek

distractions from their boring lives. Some " distractions " include

but are not

limited to drugs, alcohol, smoking, gambling, sex, violence, and

sports, all

being major industries. Severe, prolonged boredom can eventually

cause anxiety,

depression and suicide, but probably not from magnesium depletion.

If boredom is

a problem, then visiting some of the 400,000 web pages on " boredom "

is for you.

Most are boring, but the Boredom Institute is quite interesting and

potentially

helpful; and quotes William J. Bennett, in the " Death of Outrage " as

saying:

" In living memory, the chief threats to American democracy have come

from

without; first, Nazism and Japanese imperialism, and, later, Soviet

communism.

But these wars, hot and cold, ended in spectacular American

victories. The

threats we now face are from within. They are far different, more

difficult to

detect, more insidious: decadence, cynicism, and boredom. "

We all know people that seem totally immune to the effects of what we

would call an overly stressful situation. For example, George W.

Bush makes

being the President of the United States look like an easy job. Of

which other

Presidents can that be said? Other people are overstressed simply by

being asked

to work an hour longer a day for a while, or awaken an hour earlier

than usual.

They resent it and are openly unhappy about the " overwhelming " load

they are

forced to carry. Consequently, we can see that different people have

different

" scopes " , or carrying capacities for stress. Some people are vastly

flexible and

can carry many varied responsibilities without suffering from stress

overload.

Others can not. It is human nature and nurture. Adding to the

complexity, the

carrying capacity for stress varies at different stages of life.

Generally,

neither the child can carry the stress burden of a mature adult, nor

can the

very elderly, but even here there are exceptions. We can

all think of child prodigies such as Charlotte Church (perhaps the

greatest

singer alive and only 13 years old), and retiring 81 year old

Senator Jesse

Helms. What can we do to increase our scope? Beyond education, a

disciplined

mind and heart, and healthy eating and living, I am not certain that

I know.

Is magnesium supplementation the general answer to increasing our

scope?

Yes, because people deficient in magnesium have difficulty learning,

and

retaining knowledge. Optimally stressed and understressed people

will also

benefit from magnesium supplementation if they are deficient; and

there is

evidence that magnesium deficiency is rampant in our society,

causing hundreds

of specific health problems listed. Magnesium depletion will occur

regardless of

stress if the diet is low or absent in magnesium and/or there is an

excess of

calcium. Overall, men in Western cultures are believed to have a

shortfall of

about 100-mg magnesium from their diet per day and slightly larger

shortfall for

women. With so much to gain and nothing to lose, it seems like the

NIH and other

health agencies would become much more interested in promoting

magnesium - for

health. Succeed! Depression is not a psychosis! An Aspirin for the

Emotions

I have found that magnesium taurate is as effective and quick in

getting

rid of stress (objectionable and debilitating, acute, emotional

problems such as

anger, fear, rage, depression, and anxiety) as aspirin is effective

in getting

rid of simple headaches. I call magnesium an " aspirin for the

emotions " . For

example, If something makes me very upset (stressed) for real and

legitimately

reasons (or otherwise), that if I take a magnesium taurate tablet,

the problem

becomes much more manageable; and my head is cleared of the

negativity that

makes dealing with those stressful situations difficult. March 19,

2001 was the

most difficult, emotionally draining, frustrating, aggravating,

irritating day

that I have experienced in many years. I took 200 mg magnesium about

6 times

during the day and evening to overcome those stressors throughout

the day with

no side effects. Each time the magnesium seemed to work to alleviate

the bad

feelings, and those feelings were dissipated before

they could reinforce each other and really make things worse. It

works every

time in many more people reporting than only me. To get through the

stress of

the Attack on America, I needed 1800 mg of magnesium per day.

Succeed!

Depression is not a psychosis! Headaches

Treating headaches with magnesium should be obvious to the reader by

now. Does magnesium work for migraine headaches? Researchers have

found that

patients who suffer with migraines also suffer with low brain

magnesium levels.

When treated with IV magnesium 88% of those patients found complete

relief of

their migraines. Low-ionized magnesium and high-ionized

calcium/magnesium ratios

in patients with daily migrainous headaches are frequently noted.

Since starting

http://www.headachepainfree.com website in September of 2000, Shawna

Kopchu RN,

its director, has given advice to hundreds of migraine patients on

the use of

magnesium for their migraines. Out of those patients - ALL of them

got some sort

of relief with the use of magnesium. Some were completely cured and

others found

that it decreased the frequency and intensity of the migraines they

did get.

Magnesum taurate may be preferable to other forms of magnesium in

the treatment

of migraines.

I have also found that regular use of magnesium prevents headaches.

Since I started using magnesium for depression, I have not had a

headache

(unless I did something really stupid - for which I deserved a good

headache). I

have a friend that suffered from cluster headaches, the worst and

most

debilitating type of headache known to humans. People have committed

suicide to

be free of them. This person was really irritable (a clear sign of

magnesium

deficiency) and would not take magnesium, saying that if the best

doctors in the

field could not cure his headaches, why would he even listen to me?

He suffered

horrible cluster headaches for another year, and was suffering from

some

prescription drug overdoses and bad side effects. Finally, his

girlfriend told

him (after I had proselytized her for that year), that she was going

to leave

him if he didn't give magnesium a good college try. OK. He was in so

much pain

that he laid down on the floor. I did too. He knew my position on

magnesium already and all he wanted to know was the dosage. I told

him that if

I were him, I would take, at least in the beginning, 400-mg

ionizable magnesium

three times a day (breakfast, mid afternoon and bedtime) totaling

1200 mg

magnesium. I told him to avoid the toxic forms of magnesium, which

would

probably make his headaches worse. I also told him to avoid man-made

glutamates

and cut down on calcium. I didn't see them for several days, then, I

heard a

loud and very rapid knocking on my door about midnight. It was my

friend and his

girlfriend, and they were tripping over each other trying to be

first to

explosively and joyfully tell me the good news! NO MORE HEADACHES!

PERIOD!!!!!!!! Not even a minor headache! What more can I say.

Chronic headaches

without clear explanation (like a well deserved hangover) are just

another

symptom of our sick, over-medicated, magnesium deficient society.

Can you

imagine the financial losses that would be incurred by

pharmaceutical companies

if

the truth were known about magnesium and its critical role in

health? I suspect

they would declare magnesium to be toxic and force the FDA to take

it off the

market. This may happen due to the Codex treaty. Succeed! Depression

is not a psychosis!

http://coldcure.com/html/dep.html

 

 

 

 

[Guest guest]

Well and good, if all that was amiss was the magnesium.

 

A more comprehensive approach that almost always works, is used by

'the father of orthomolecular medicine' Dr Abram Hoffer. He's been

using dietary and detox, plus magnesium, zinc,trace elements and b-

complex, with additional very high doses of niacin. This method has

been working for depression, anxiety, insomnia, and even

schizophrenia, for over 40 years, and has been adopted by many

orthomolecular physicians.

 

regards,

 

Duncan crow