Why is Magnesium Important for Your Health?
Most people hear about magnesium as being an important mineral for our health but what exactly is magnesium and why is it important? Magnesium can help alleviate inflammation and can also help with general pain management. Most pain you experience is some form of inflammation, it’s just not commonly referred to that way. Magnesium is beneficial for relieving many forms of inflammation because it helps regulate cell functions. Â
Magnesium can also be great for improving the health of your brain.
If you’ve ever experienced “brain fog”, magnesium can help reduce that by helping your brain’s cognitive function. Stress also reduces magnesium which can send you into the vicious cycle of not being able to think as clearly. Magnesium has also been shown to improve long-term memory by helping to strengthen the synapses in that region of your brain.
Magnesium can also be extremely beneficial in reducing stress and anxiety.
Magnesium can increase serotonin production, which improves moods. It can also help relax your nerves, relieve tension in your muscles and improve the amount of deep sleep you get every night.
Magnesium is one of the minerals that a majority of people tend to be deficient in. Magnesium deficiencies don’t tend to have obvious symptoms though and can be easily overlooked. In addition to being overlooked, it’s hard to detect a deficiency through blood testing because the majority of magnesium in your body does not exist in your blood. Your body also loses magnesium stores through many normal bodily functions so it’s important to make sure you are getting the proper amounts. To help ensure you are getting the daily recommended amounts of magnesium, you should start by making sure you eat foods that contain high amounts.
Foods that are high in magnesium:
- Spinach
- Pumpkin seeds
- Black beans
- Dark chocolate
- Almonds
- Avocados
- Figs
- Bananas
There are many forms of magnesium available via supplements but not all of them work the same. Some forms of magnesium are not easily absorbed by your body, therefore, you’re not getting as much of a benefit as you might think. The best forms of magnesium are magnesium orotate, magnesium glycinate, magnesium taurate and magnesium sulfate.
Magnesium interacts with other vital minerals and nutrients to help your body function at its most optimal. If you aren’t getting proper amounts of magnesium it could lessen the effects of other minerals and nutrients and certain aspects of your health could start to decline more quickly. Make sure you turn to a healthy and balanced diet to make sure you are getting the proper amounts of all vitamins, minerals, and nutrients and consult a physician if you feel you need to supplement any of these to maintain proper health.