Bryce Hanna

THE DEFINITIVE GUIDE TO MAGNESIUM

Today we're going back to the basics with an overview of my favorite mineral of all time, magnesium, one of the cornerstones of life on earth

Why magnesium is so important, and how to use it to improve your health

THREAD // 

This thread will be split into two sections:

The chemistry of magnesium, and how to supplement magnesium

If you're only interested in practical advice feel free to scroll down to the second section

Now without further ado, let's jump right in

MAGNESIUM CHEMISTRY

Magnesium is what's known as a divalent cation

This means it has two outer orbital electrons, and it tends to lose them giving it a +2 charge in solution

It's found in group 2 in the periodic table with other divalent cations like calcium and beryllium 

The defining property of magnesium as an element is its high charge/size ratio

Compared to the other cations used in biology (calcium, sodium, and potassium) magnesium has the smallest atomic radius but +2 charge

This plays a role in how magnesium interacts with water 

Water is a molecular dipole, the oxygen side holds more negative electrons, while the two hydrogens are more positive

This means a "hydration shell" of water molecules will cluster around charged ions dissolved in water

Magnesium forms a larger hydration shell than calcium 

Calcium's small hydration shell allows it to diffuse quickly

Because calcium and magnesium have the same +2 charge, calcium binding sites in proteins are occupied by magnesium at rest

Sudden calcium influx displaces it, activating various proteins and stimulating the cell

This is also what allows magnesium to act as a calcium channel blocker

It binds calcium channels, such as the excitatory NMDA glutamate receptors in neurons, but its hydration shell is too large to pass through

This gives it an inhibitory effect on muscle, neuron firing, etc 

Another important role magnesium plays is its interaction with ATP

ATP serves several purposes in living cells

It contains a tail made of three phosphate groups, and directly activates many protein by attaching phosphate groups to them

It also acts as a marker of energy status 

This is because the level of ATP is directly coupled to the charge separation that mitochondria use to generate energy

Normally in solution, ATP will rapidly degrade into ADP by losing phosphate groups

The cell maintains a far-from-entropy state by keeping a high ATP/ADP ratio 

Magnesium slows down the natural breakdown of ATP into ADP by stabilizing its phosphate chain

Magnesium is ideal for this purpose because its high charge/size ratio allows it to form a tight bond with the phosphate groups

Replacing it with other ions tends to destabilize ATP 

Magnesium also acts as a direct cofactor by speeding up various reaction in cells

Some estimates suggest that more than 40% of all enzymes in the body require magnesium to function

Often this stems from magnesium's ability to bind nearby water rather than magnesium itself

A good example of this is hydrolysis reactions

Hydrolysis refers to a type of bond-breaking reaction that uses water as a cofactor

Usually this involves splitting water into -OH and +H and attaching each half to one of the resulting byproducts, such as in breaking peptide bonds 

Another reason magnesium works closely with ATP is that breaking the phosphate bond in ATP also involves hydrolysis

This means proteins that are phosphorylated (activated) by ATP usually have a magnesium binding site that provides water

Magnesium is necessary to burn ATP 

Other factors in biology including GTP, vitamin B1, glucose, and creatine have phosphate forms that require magnesium to stabilize or use

Magnesium is also a mild Lewis acid and can speed up reactions that require acidity

DNA and other proteins even coil around magnesium ions

HOW TO SUPPLEMENT MAGNESIUM

Magnesium is one of the most accessible, affordable, and well-tolerated supplements on the market

I think just about everyone could benefit from using it

First, let's talk about two concepts:
"magnesium burn rate" and
"magnesium saturation"

The "burn rate" for magnesium refers to how much the body uses in a given period of time

Factors like age, stress, disease, aging, and physical activity can all affect your daily magnesium requirement

This concept applies to other nutrients like potassium and B-vitamins as well

Magnesium saturation occurs when the magnesium supply is enough for the body to fulfill its requirements, with some extra

Most people don't realize that bone doesn't just serve as a reservoir for calcium

It's estimated that more than 10 grams of magnesium can be stored in bone!

When magnesium burn rate is high, and magnesium intake is low, the storage levels of magnesium can be depleted over time

This is compounded by the fact that modern agriculture has led to most fruits/vegetables being significantly depleted of magnesium due to low soil levels 

Magnesium storage also means that blood tests like serum magnesium are not able to detect deficiency

Patients often end up in the ICU before they're diagnosed with deficient magnesium
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5872533/

RBC magnesium is a more accurate test that looks at cellular levels

Some estimates suggest as much as 90% of the population is magnesium deficient

Often this is "sub-clinical" deficiency that could take years to cause problems, but severe illness will increase its severity

This is why I'm so passionate about supplementing magnesium

So how do we reverse deficiency and get to a point of magnesium saturation?

There are three main ways to get more magnesium:

- eat magnesium-rich foods
- use a magnesium supplement
- apply magnesium topically

Let's briefly look at all three options

Magnesium-rich foods include:

- hemp seeds
- sprouted brown rice or oats
- spinach/kale/chard/beet greens
- pumpkin/chia/flax seeds
- dark chocolate (make sure it's low in heavy metals)
- avocados
- bananas
- meats like wild game/turkey/fish
- potatoes and other root vegetables

When it comes to magnesium supplements there are various forms to choose from

The most important thing to consider is how well each form absorbs

Well-absorbed forms: 
magnesium glycinate, taurate, lysinate, malate

Poorly absorbed forms: 
magnesium citrate, oxide, hydroxide

The magnesium content of each form also varies, since whatever carrier the magnesium ions are bound to makes up a % of the weight

The percentage of "elemental" magnesium lets us calculate the magnesium it provides

Total weight in mg x decimal percentage = magnesium content 

So what's the best way to dose magnesium?

There are many protocols available but my personal approach is to use as much as is tolerated orally

Too much magnesium in a serving, especially of poorly absorbed forms, can induce a laxative effect and this should generally be avoided

The "bowel flush" from magnesium is actually due to its ability to hold water once again

Magnesium absorption channels occur in the upper intestine, so if unabsorbed magnesium makes it to the colon it prevents water removal

Other nutrients like calcium can work the same way 

This means the optimal way to dose magnesium is smaller doses spread throughout the day (ie 100-300mg)

The bowel flush can be useful to relieve constipation, but it's best to avoid it long term

Taking magnesium with food/water also seems to improve its absorption

My three favorite forms are:

- magnesium glycinate
- magnesium taurate
- magnesium chloride

The first two can be purchased as powder or pre-filled capsules, and taken throughout the day/before bed

Magnesium chloride can be dissolved in water and sipped throughout the day

I highly suggest buying gel caps and bulk magnesium powder and making your own capsules to save money

If you find filling capsules tedious, you can use a "capsule machine" or filling tray

If using food grade magnesium chloride, I would simply start with ~1/4 tsp in water 

This brings us to topical magnesium

There are two forms of magnesium that are used topically: 
magnesium chloride and epsom salt (magnesium sulfate)

Either form can be dissolved in water and applied topically using a spray bottle, bath, or foot soak

Magnesium chloride spray recipe:

- Buy a glass spray bottle
- Measure out 1-2 cups of water
- Measure 10-25% of the volume of the water as magnesium chloride, add to water until it dissolves
- Add a few drops of essential oil for scent if desired

This means 25% magnesium solution is 1 cup water + 1/4 cup magnesium

It may be necessary to lightly warm the water to fully dissolve the magnesium

Magnesium sulfate can be used instead if you find chloride itchy/irritating