The clinical reality is that for at least 30 percent, magnesium levels are already critically low. One slight drop, and there is often hell to pay.
The kidney does have an extraordinary ability to reduce magnesium loss in urine and thus achieve magnesium balance on a wide variety of intakes. Still, that balance only is maintained in the blood to avoid instant cardiac arrest if magnesium levels crash in the blood. The body will always steal Magnesium from the bones and cells to keep blood levels, which is why doctors who use blood serum magnesium tests give misleading results.
Most doctors and laboratories don’t even include magnesium status in routine blood tests. Thus, most doctors don’t know when their patients are deficient in Magnesium, even though studies show that most Americans are low. Dr. Norman Shealy states, “Every known illness is associated with a magnesium deficiency. Magnesium is the most critical mineral required for the electrical stability of every cell in the body. Therefore, a magnesium deficiency may be responsible for more diseases than any other nutrient.”
Because magnesium deficiency is largely overlooked, millions of Americans suffer needlessly. One has to recognize the signs of magnesium thirst or hunger on their own since most doctors are lost in this regard. After oxygen, water, and basic food, Magnesium may be the most essential element our bodies need, vitally important. Yet, millions suffer daily from magnesium deficiency without even knowing it.
Over a decade ago, the number 67 percent was thrown around to describe the size of the magnesium deficient population. And that depended much on the wrong type of blood test to measure it. I would say, ‘everyone needs more magnesium.’ It is a safe medical assumption. It would be hard to find many people who eat spinach all day, for that is what one would need to do to keep up with the necessary magnesium levels to endure chronic toxic exposures and the increased stress of modern living.
That might be a slight exaggeration, but I still would assume 95 percent would have some cellular (not blood serum) deficiencies. It is hard unless one supplement to keep up with daily needs for Magnesium. So even if we get only a little behind, the shortage builds through time, creating profound chronic deficits that throw us down hard onto the mats of misery.
Magnesium Torment (Deficiency)
Symptoms of Magnesium Deficiency
The first symptoms of deficiency can be subtle – as most Magnesium is stored in the tissues, leg cramps, foot pain, or muscle ‘twitches’ can be the first sign. Other early deficiency symptoms include loss of appetite, nausea, vomiting, fatigue, and weakness. As magnesium deficiency worsens, numbness, tingling, seizures, personality changes, abnormal heart rhythms, and coronary spasms occur.
Dr. Sidney Baker. “Magnesium deficiency can affect virtually every organ system of the body. Concerning skeletal muscle, one may experience twitches, cramps, muscle tension, and muscle soreness, including backaches, neck pain, tension headaches, and jaw joint (or TMJ) dysfunction. Also, one may experience chest tightness or a peculiar sensation that he can’t take a deep breath. Sometimes a person may sigh a lot.”
“Symptoms involving impaired contraction of smooth muscles include constipation; urinary spasms; menstrual cramps; difficulty swallowing or a lump in the throat-especially provoked by eating sugar; photophobia, especially difficulty adjusting to oncoming bright headlights in the absence of eye disease; and loud noise sensitivity from stapedius muscle tension in the ear.”