Magnesium Citrate Capsules 160 mg., 100 capsules

A review of assimilation studies suggests that the citrate salt of magnesium is the best absorbed into the bloodstream. The major downside of using magnesium citrate, however, is that it is only 16% magnesium. And the recommended intake of elemental magnesium to maintain vascular health is between 300 to 800 mg a day.

The Life Extension Buyers Club offers a new magnesium supplement that provides 160 mg of elemental magnesium in each 1000-mg capsule of magnesium citrate. This gives you the citrate salt’s high absorb-ability while providing adequate amounts of elemental magnesium.

Magnesium's Importance in a Healthy Cardiovascular System

Magnesium plays an important role in the functioning of the cardiovascular system. A decrease in magnesium has been linked with tachydysrhythmias (fast, irregular heartbeats) and increased mortality in CHF patients.¹ The research shows that use of magnesium supplements in these situations may be beneficial for treating and preventing life-threatening conditions. Magnesium supplements can be administered safely either orally or by injection depending on the situation.^2,3 In one study, patients with severe CHF took a supplement of 300 mg of oral magnesium citrate daily for 30 days. In some of these patients, oral magnesium supplementation was effective in achieving substantial increments in intracellular magnesium.²

Magnesium in Hypertension Prevention and Control

Which nutrients are the most important for maintaining a healthy blood pressure? Two that stand out are the metallic elements potassium and magnesium.

Magnesium is one of the body’s most important minerals. It is required as a cofactor in hundreds of enzymatic processes within cells.⁴

Magnesium is a major factor in

Relaxing the smooth muscles within the blood vessels, thereby reducing peripheral vascular resistance and blood pressure.^4-6
Reduces nerve and muscle excitability,
Stabilizes cardiac conductivity, and
Influences neurochemical transmission.^4,6,7
Affects circulating levels of norepinephrine and the synthesis of serotonin and nitric oxide.^4,7,8

Indeed, because of magnesium’s primary role in blood pressure regulation, for decades scientists have called magnesium “nature’s calcium channel blocker” because magnesium directly offsets the constriction of blood vessels caused by calcium.^4,7 Because drug companies cannot make money from a natural substance like magnesium, they have developed a whole group of drugs called calcium antagonists or calcium channel blockers to do what magnesium does. In 2000, doctors wrote more than 95 million prescriptions for calcium antagonists, including top sellers amlo-dipine (Norvasc®), nifedipine (Procardia®), diltiazem (Cardizem®, Tiazac®), and others at a total cost of more than $4.5 billion.⁹ These drugs are not only costly, but they can also cause side effects such as dizziness, palpitations, fatigue, tiredness, and swollen legs. Yet many doctors do not hesitate to prescribe these drugs because they were never taught about magnesium. While legions of pharmaceutical sales representatives bring stacks of studies and free samples of these drugs, no one pushes magnesium.¹⁰

Magnesium and Treatment for Migraines
(from An Innovative New Treatment for Migraine by Dr. Sergey A. Dzugan, LE Magazine, 2004, Sept.)

Migraine is not a single disorder, but a collection of disorders. According to our hypothesis, a migraine involves faulty hormonal feedback in the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal-gonadal axis. Contributing to this hormonal abnormality is an imbalance between two of the three arms of the autonomic nervous system (the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems), which causes a decline in the brain’s pain threshold. Because of disequilibrium between intra- and extracellular calcium and magnesium, the polarity of the cell membrane is changed, which affects the electrical stability of the cell membrane and sensitivity to neurohormonal impulses (steroid hormones, melatonin, and serotonin). Lastly, the intestinal flora is altered, which results in abnormal absorption.

During the last 15 years, many researchers have proposed that migraine is generated by a hyperexcitable brain. A migraine attack can be triggered at any time, depending on the threshold of brain excitability, and in fact, the frequency of migraines is proportional to the excitability level. According to classic theory, a migraine attack is initiated by a cerebrovascular spasm followed by extracranial vasodilatation. This change may be caused by an imbalance in brain biochemistry. Decreased cellular oxygen can cause an increase in the flow of calcium from the extracellular fluid to the intracellular space, resulting in a calcium overload and cellular dysfunction.¹¹ Disturbances in mitochondrial oxidation reactions, magnesium deficiency, or abnormalities of cellular calcium channels may be responsible for the neuronal hyperexcitability between attacks.¹² Clinical studies by the Life Extension foundation indicate that the restoration of calcium-magnesium balance is one of the critical issues in migraine therapy.

Magnesium, Allergies and Asthma

Asthma is largely due to allergies. Asthma can be brought on by many causes: food and beverages, and the sulfites in them, or environmental allergens: fresh paint, perfumes, spray deodorants, cigarette smoke, gasoline or car exhaust fumes; hay, wood, coal or chalk dust; various chemicals such as cleaning solvents, household cleaners and insecticides; pollen and mold. Home humidifiers and air conditioners have been identified as harbors of bronchial-constricting molds. When eliminating offending allergens, leave no filter unchanged. As magnesium levels decline, the incidence of allergies and asthma increases. A dose of 1000 mg a day of magnesium is recommended (Hijazi et al. 2000).

Magnesium Citrate 160 mg. 100 capsules

Supplement Facts

1 capsule contains:

Magnesium citrate 1000 mg

Supplying Magnesium (elemental) 160 mg

Dosage and use

Suggested dose: one to six capsules daily.

References

1. Seelig MS. Interrelationship of magnesium and congestive heart failure. Wien Med Wochenschr 2000 150(15-16):335-41.

2. Cohen N, Alon I, Almoznino-Sarafian D,et al. Metabolic and clinical effects of oral magnesium supplementation in furosemide-treated patients with severe congestive heart failure. Clin Cardiol 2000 23(6):433-6.

3. Hix CD. Magnesium in congestive heart failure, acute myocardial infarction and dysrhythmias. J Cardiovasc Nurs 1993 8(1):19-31.

4. Rude RK. Magnesium deficiency: a cause of heterogeneous disease in humans. J Bone Miner Res. 1998 Apr;13(4):749-58.

5. Drug Facts and Comparisons. St. Louis, MO: Facts and Comparisons; 1996.

6. Cohen JS. High-dose oral magnesium in the treatment of chronic, intractable erythromelalgia. Ann Pharmacother. 2002 Feb;36(2):255-60.

7. Iseri LT, French JH. Magnesium: nature’s physiologic calcium blocker. Am Heart J. 1984 Jul;108(1):18893.

8. Leppert J, Myrdal U, Hedner T, Edvinsson L, Tracz Z, Ringqvist I. Effect of magnesium sulfate infusion on circulating levels of noradrenaline and neuropeptide-Y-like immunoreactivity in patients with primary Raynaud’s phenomenon. Angiology. 1994 Jul;45(7):637-45.

9. Latner AW. 34th annual top 200 drugs. Pharmacy Times. April 1999.

10. Cohen JS. OverDose: The Case Against the Drug Companies. New York, NY: Tarcher/Putnam; 2001.

11. Gelmers HJ. Calcium-channel blockers in the treatment of migraine. Am J Cardiol. 1985 Jan 25;55(3):139B-43B.

12. Welch KM. Pathogenesis of migraine. Semin Neurol. 1997;17(4):335-41.

Warning: These products are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease. Please consult with a healthcare professional before starting any diet or exercise program. Some of these products are not recommended for individuals under the age of 18.

This page was last modified on Thursday November 06, 2008