Magnesium is one of the very useful and widespread food supplements. If you have ever looked for magnesium bisglycinate in a pharmacy, you have surely wondered about all the salts offered: magnesium chloride, citrate, bisglycinate and many others. To make the right choices and optimize your magnesium supplementation, this article is for you!
Our body is not capable of manufacturing magnesium but it loses it very regularly. This is why so many of us are deficient in magnesium. To find out if you are concerned, I invite you to read this article on magnesium deficiency . Magnesium losses vary depending on age, life situations, and our stress. Only our diet or supplementation provides the quantities of magnesium necessary for the proper functioning of our metabolism.
The role of magnesium
Magnesium is an intracellular ion, meaning it circulates very little in the blood. It is present mainly in bones, in cells (mainly red blood cells), muscles and the liver. Magnesium is involved in more than 300 chemical reactions in the body. For example, a lack of magnesium complicates the absorption of omega 3, which is so necessary for our body.
Lack of magnesium also makes muscle relaxation more difficult. This is why the appearance of cramps can prompt us to take magnesium bisglycinate supplements from pharmacies. Of course, these are just two examples among many.
Also, magnesium plays a crucial role in the production of ATP (Adenosine TriPhosphate), i.e. the production of energy for all cellular reactions in the body. In the case of a lack of magnesium, the transport of cells, their division, their creation are disrupted. Magnesium is also involved in intestinal motility, nerve impulses, cardiac contractions, etc.
These few examples are enough to understand that a magnesium deficiency impacts many metabolic functions and causes problems.
The amounts of magnesium needed
As I said in the introduction, our body does not know how to produce magnesium. Daily magnesium requirements are between 400 and 420 mg per day for men, slightly lower for women between 310 and 320 mg per day under optimal living conditions (which is rarely the case).
Our diet is the main source of magnesium. This is why it is very important to have a balanced and anti-inflammatory diet . You should also know that our intestinal flora and our microbiota play an essential role in absorbing magnesium.
So if you have already followed magnesium treatments without feeling any benefits, it may be useful to turn to a naturopath to look for individual causes, such as a disturbed intestinal microbiota.
Where to find magnesium naturally
Before buying magnesium bisglycinate at the pharmacy, you will probably want to increase your intake naturally. To do this, it is useful to know the quantities of magnesium provided in typical portions of food. Below, I voluntarily indicate these quantities per portion and not per 100g as we regularly see. Indeed, knowing that coriander seeds provide around 256mg of magnesium per 100g is completely useless because we rarely consume them, and at most 1g on a plate.
As you can see, many everyday foods contain magnesium. It is therefore quite easy to meet our needs by adopting a balanced and anti-inflammatory diet.
Why are we deficient in magnesium?
Even if you eat a varied diet which a priori covers your magnesium needs, there are periods of life or particular situations when our body loses more magnesium. It is precisely these leaks that it is good to focus on.
Many people are chronically deficient in magnesium. The main cause of these deficiencies is stress, but it is not the only factor.
People suffering from chronic diarrhea, heavy consumers of coffee and alcohol, people on anti-depressants, the elderly and women on the pill experience a greater daily loss of magnesium. In addition, they assimilate magnesium from food less well.
All these people then very regularly have magnesium needs much higher than the quantities indicated above. For them, supplementation such as magnesium bisglycinate in pharmacies is therefore essential. However, other people are often lacking in magnesium and are less aware of it, namely athletes.
Magnesium and sport
Magnesium is lost naturally through the stools (unabsorbed magnesium), through sweat and urine (circulating magnesium) and through a major route of excretion: the kidneys.
With regular physical activity, these losses become very significant. In fact, athletes experience a greater loss of magnesium, due to sweat and muscular activity. He must therefore be particularly vigilant in order to cover his magnesium needs. Otherwise, cramps, inflammation and pain arrive quickly.
The athlete’s needs are around 600 mg per day, almost double that of a sedentary person. On days of very high physical activity (trail running for example), requirements can reach up to 900mg.
I advise you to opt for magnesium bisglycinate in pharmacies. In 99% of cases, these digestive discomforts disappear and a clear improvement is noted.
Marine magnesium is often offered because it is natural. However, its bioavailability is average. You will therefore obtain correct effects but there are much better, such as magnesium bisglycinate.
How much pharmacy magnesium bisglycinate?
I advise you to do cures of 6 to 8 weeks and to take small quantities per day rather than a single dose in order to promote assimilation. A supplement of 150 mg twice daily is often well suited. I often suggest combining vitamin B6 and taurine in order to activate magnesium and fix it in the cell.
Except for specific pathologies, over-supplementation of pharmacy magnesium bisglycinate will be evacuated in the urine without any consequences. In addition, it is very difficult to measure magnesium. As I told you at the start of the article, magnesium is intracellular. That is to say, approximately 50% of magnesium is concentrated in the bone, the rest is found in the cells. Only 1% is circulating and contained in the blood. This is why it is not possible to measure magnesium with a blood test. We will therefore rely on external signs such as irritability, cramps, fluttering eyelids, etc. to manage magnesium bislycinate supplementation.
All guidance in this article is generic advice. Only an individual and personalized naturopathy session can meet your own needs and avoid any risk of error.