Subject: IMVA - Magnesium Deficiency - August 25, 2005.

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IMVA - Magnesium Deficiency - August 25, 2005. JoAnn Guest Sep 17,

2005 12:18 PDT

Mark Sircus Ac., OMD

Magnesium Deficiency

International Medical Veritas Association

 

When trace minerals are scarce in plant

bodies they become scarce in human bodies.

 

 

We humans are not getting the minerals and especially

magnesium we need because modem agricultural methods, including

widespread use of N P K fertilizer, over farming, loss of protective

ground cover and trees, and lack of humus have made soils vulnerable

to erosion.

The result is a reduced nutrient content of crops. N P K

fertilizer is highly acidic.

It disrupts the pH (acid/alkaline)

balance of the soil, as does acid rain.

 

Acid conditions destroy soil microorganisms. It is the job of these

microorganisms to transmute soil minerals into a form that is usable by

plants.

 

In the absence of these microbes, these minerals become locked up,

unavailable to the plant.

 

Stimulated by the N P K fertilizer, the plant grows, but it is

deficient in vital trace minerals.

 

In the absence of trace minerals, plants take up heavy metals (such as

aluminum, mercury and lead) from the soil.

 

Between 1950 and 1975, the calcium content in one cup of

rice dropped 21 percent, and iron fell by 28.6 percent.

Dr. Scott Whitaker, in his book MediSin, tells us how

highly unfortunate it is that the modern day farmer has been persuaded

to use monoculture, artificial fertilization, pesticides, and

herbicides.

" The end result of our domestic food needs has been

" quantity " rather than " quality. " The human body can thrive on fruits

and vegetables that are grown on vital rich soil but not on soil that is

artificially pumped up with chemicals. "

We need an average of 200 mg. more

magnesium than we get from the average diet.

Dr. Mildred Seelig

President of the American College of Nutrition

Dr. Nan Kathryn Fuchs, author of The Nutrition Detective,

says that, " Our diets today are very different from those of our

ancestors though our bodies remain similar.

Thousands of years ago, our ancestors ate foods high in magnesium and

low in calcium.

Because calcium supplies were scarce and the need for this vital mineral

was great, it was effectively stored by the body.

Magnesium, on the other hand, was abundant and readily available, in the

form of nuts, seeds, grains, and vegetables, and did not need to be

stored internally.

Our bodies still retain calcium and not magnesium although we tend to

eat much more dairy than our ancestors.

In addition, our sugar and alcohol consumption is higher than theirs,

and both sugar and alcohol increase magnesium excretion through the

urine.

Our grains, originally high in

magnesium, have been refined, which means that the nutrient is lost in

the refining process.

The quality of our soil has deteriorated as

well, due to the use of fertilizers that contain large amounts of

potassium a magnesium antagonist. This results in foods lower in

magnesium than ever before. "

The food supply has been steadily becoming

magnesium-poor since 1909:[ii]

1909 intake

408 mg/day

1949 intake

368 mg/day

1980 intake

349 mg/day

1985 intake

323 mg/day (men)

1985 intake

228 mg/day (women)

The magnesium content of refined foods is usually low.

Whole-wheat bread, for example, has twice as much magnesium as white

bread because the magnesium-rich germ and bran are removed when white

flour is processed.

Magnesium deficiency is more likely in those who

eat a processed-food diet; in people who cook or boil all foods,

especially vegetables;

in those who drink soft water;

in alcoholics; and in people who eat food grown in magnesium-deficient

soil, where

synthetic fertilizers containing no magnesium are often used.

Deficiency is also more common when magnesium absorption is decreased,

such as after burns, serious injuries, or surgery and in patients with

diabetes, liver disease, or malabsorption problems.

Also deficiencies

develop when magnesium elimination is increased, which it is in people

who use alcohol, caffeine, or excess sugar, or who take diuretics or

birth control pills.

We can probably add to this list vaccines because

they offer a traumatic insult to the body that have to be defended

against.

Drugs that cause loss of body magnesium:

· Alcohol

· Cocaine

· Beta-adrenergic agonists (for asthma)

· Corticosteroids (CS) (for asthma)

· Theophylline (for asthma)

· Diuretics

· Thiazide

· Caffeine.

· Phosphates (found in cola drinks)

· Nicotine

· Insulin

The nutrient content of foods can no longer be relied upon.

The effects of stress, intense physical activity, or the use

of certain medications cause magnesium deficiency.

Magnesium metabolism has one quirk in that, if the level

is low enough to cause symptoms, it is low enough that the body loses

its ability to absorb it efficiently orally.

Since magnesium (Mg), an

essential nutrient, is abundant in the environment it is generally

assumed that Mg deficiency is not a problem but nothing could be

further from the truth.

Because Magnesium in certain forms is not

easily absorbed and because no classical symptoms exist that point to

magnesium's causal role in disease, the problem of its deficiency is

readily masked.

Many are the conditions which reduce total body

magnesium and increase magnesium requirements.[iii] The current

Recommended Daily Allowance (RDA) for the US is 6 mg/Kg/day, which

translates to 420 mg for a 70 Kg man.

The estimated intake in the US is 300 mg/day. With nutritional values

declining quickly and chemical toxicity in our bodies rising rapidly we

and our children are caught

between a rock and a hard place.

Almost two years ago I wrote a Tale of Two Hammers about the situation

in Africa where populations were being decimated because mass vaccine

programs where being administered

to malnourished populations whose immune systems were already

compromised. Little did I dream then of a similar situation in the west.

Magnesium and Calcium

Magnesium taken in proper dosages can

solve the problem of calcium deficiency.

Dr. Nan Kathryn Fuchs

Magnesium and calcium have competing effects on many of

the body's chemical pathways.

For example calcium causes muscles to contract, while magnesium helps

them relax.

Magnesium and calcium are paired minerals and it is vital we take into

account the balance between them. Several studies have reported that

increasing calcium in the diet significantly reduces the absorption of

magnesium.

Calcium intakes above 2.6 grams per day may reduce the uptake and

utilization of magnesium by the body and excessive calcium intakes may

increase magnesium requirements.

So much stress is placed on the importance of calcium that we may, in

fact, be taking in too much and harming magnesium absorption.

Dietary surveys clearly show that magnesium, not calcium,

intakes have been falling.

Magnesium is needed for calcium absorption.

Without enough magnesium, calcium can collect in the soft tissues and

cause one form of arthritis.

Not only does calcium collect in the soft tissues of arthritics, it is

poorly, if at all, absorbed into their

blood and bones.

Some researchers predict that the American ratio of

calcium to magnesium is actually approaching 6-to-1, yet, the

recommended dietary ratio of calcium to magnesium in the United States

is 2-to-1.

Current research on the Paleolithic or caveman diet shows

that the ratio of calcium to magnesium in the diet that our bodies

evolved to eat is 1-to-1.4 [iv]

Balancing this information is the fact

that mothers breast milk is ten parts calcium to only one part

magnesium so it seems that at least early in life we need less

magnesium and more calcium to build strong bones.

Though high doses of calcium carbonate taken alone over a long period of

time will lead to low magnesium levels;[v]

yet magnesium is what is needed to encourage

the correct utilization of calcium by the body to increase bone

strength.[vi]

Currently, the American diet ratio of calcium to

magnesium is officially recognized at being (4:1) when the ideal ratio

should be two to one.[vii] Without magnesium, calcium is not fully

utilized, and under absorption problems may occur leading to

arthritis, osteoporosis, menstrual cramps, and some premenstrual

symptoms.

A diet high in dairy and low in whole grains can lead

to excess calcium in the tissues and a magnesium deficiency.[viii]

Dr. Nan Kathryn Fuchs

Mark Sircus Ac., OMD International Medical Veritas Association

http://www.detoxchelationclinic.com

http://www.imva.info

http://www.worldpsychology.net

+55-83-3252-2195

www.skype.com ID: marksircus

Dr. Alan Gaby has put forward compelling evidence linking

the incidence of degenerative disease conditions with a lack of

micronutrients in our diet.

He points out that as we get less of the

vital nutrients in our diet, we actually need more because the body

uses its store of micronutrients to help neutralize poisons as they

enter the body. Almost every human being on earth now is caught in a

Catch-22.

We are all absorbing environmental pollutants, medicines,

vaccines, dental products, and poisons in our food and water, which

not only inhibit the normal biochemical functions of vital

micronutrients, they also destroy or deplete these vital substances.

[ii] Paul Mason. Violence Prevention through Magnesium-Rich

Water. Healthy Water Association. http://www.mgwater.com/cyalettr.shtml

[iii] The following substances and conditions may reduce total

body magnesium and increase magnesium requirements: alcohol (all forms

cause significant losses), mphetamines/cocaine, bums (with large surface

area),

calcium (excessive intake may decrease body magnesium balance),

carbohydrates (especially white sugar,

high fructose corn syrup, white flour),

chronic pain (any cause),

coffee (significant losses),

cyclosporin (extra magnesium can protect from side-effects),

diabetes (magnesium spills with sugar in the urine),

diarrhea (any cause),

dieting (stress plus lowered intake),

diuretics (even potassium sparing diuretics do not spare magnesium),

insulin (whether

from using insulin or from hyperinsulinemia),

over-training (extreme

athletic physical conditioning/training),

phentermine/fenfluramine,

sodas (especially cola type sodas, both diet and regular), sodium

(high salt intake),

stress (physical and mental—anything that

activates a person's fight or flight reaction),

surgery and sweat.

[iv] Eades M, Eades A, The Protein Power Lifeplan, Warner

Books, New York, 1999

[v] Camara-Martos, F. and M.A. Amaro-Lopez, Influence of

Dietary Factors on Calcium Bioavailability. Biological Trace Element

Research, 2002. 89: p. 43-52

[vi] Jones, G., M. Riley, and T. Dwyer, Maternal Diet during

pregnancy is associated with bone mineral density in children: a

longitudinal study. European Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 2000. 54:

p. 749-756

[vii] Celotti, F. and A. Bignamini, Dietary Calcium and

Mineral/Vitamin Supplementation: a controversial problem. The Journal

of International Research, 1999(27): p. 1-14

[viii] The source of menstrual cramps may come from eating too

much cheese, yogurt, ice cream or milk, combined with insufficient

whole grains and beans. Or it could come from taking too much calcium

without enough magnesium. Modifying diet and increasing magnesium

supplementation may allow menstrual cramps to disappear.

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AIM Barleygreen

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