Magnesium Deficiency: How to Recognize the Signs & Symptoms

By Dr. Valerie Monteiro Last updated Nov 12, 2024

Magnesium, the unsung hero of nerve health, may alleviate nerve pain, muscle cramps, and sleepless nights.

Up to 80% of people over 60 and up to half under 60 are deficient in magnesium, leading to muscle twitching, nerves on edge, and sleep deprivation. Low levels of this vital nutrient may be silently destroying your nervous system.

What is Magnesium?

The lack of magnesium can can have a significant impact on your nerves.

Magnesium is not an ordinary mineral. Its an electrolyte that helps regulate the balance of fluids in and around your cells and carries an electric charge crucial for many bodily functions, specifically vital for the nervous system.

Why is Magnesium Important?

This powerhouse electrolyte plays many roles in the body. Magnesium is a crucial mineral in the body, essential for over 300 enzymatic functions that support a wide range of physiological processes.

Nerve Function

Magnesium controls the excitability of nerve cells. It prevents nerves from becoming overactive or overly sensitive, which prevents spasms, cramps, and nerve pain.

It also regulates nerve transmission, lessening erratic signal transmissions. Decreased levels can cause anxiety and increased sensitivity to pain.

Muscle Function

It balances calcium, which is essential for proper muscle function. While calcium triggers muscle contractions, magnesium helps the muscles relax after contraction.

If you experience a deficiency, muscles can remain contracted for extended periods, leading to muscle twitching, cramps, and spasms.

The magnesium/calcium balance also keeps your heart rhythm normal.

Enzymes

Magnesium is an essential cofactor, a helper that assists more than 300 enzymes in your body, especially for the function of mitochondria in nerves. It helps mitochondria produce ATP (energy for the cells).

Neurons, especially, need a lot of energy for proper function because they constantly transmit signals. Without magnesium, mitochondrial energy production in nerves is compromised, leading to nerve dysfunction, fatigue, and brain fog.

Symptoms of Magnesium Deficiency

Magnesium deficiency does not show up on blood tests, as only 1% resides in the blood. The other 99% of magnesium resides in nerve cells, muscles, bones, and other tissues which is why blood tests cannot evaluate accurate levels of this mineral.

As a result, a large percentage of people walk around with undetected deficiency. The only way to tell is through symptoms and and by evaluating lifestyles habits that can predispose you to a magnesium deficiency.

Common symptoms include:

Muscle cramps
Muscle weakness
Fatigue
Irritability
Difficulty sleeping
Heart arrhythmias (abnormal heart rhythm)

People with more severe deficiencies may experience numbness or tingling in their hands, feet, or faces, possibly leading to seizures.

Doctors struggle to diagnose a deficiency because the symptoms resemble many other conditions. If labs do not show deficiencies and symptoms align with different ailments, how do you know?

We recommend examining the status of your overall health.

If you consume a diet high in processed foods, sugars, and bad fats, you likely are deficient. High sugar intake increases the amount of magnesium excreted out of the body through your urine.

We recommend avoiding the following beverages.

Avoid Alcohol

Chronic alcohol consumption (drinking a few beers every night or excess alcohol intake) causes a significant magnesium loss through the urine.

Avoid Caffeinated Beverages

Caffeinated drinks like coffee, tea, and energy drinks cause a mild diuretic, resulting in increased urine output. The increased uring causes a loss of magnesium.

We recommend drinking caffeinated beverages in moderation, such as 2 cups (16 oz) or less daily. If you drink several cups of coffee, energy drinks, and sodas daily, you are likely deficient.

Avoid Sugary Beverages

Drinks like sodas or fruit juices raise blood sugar levels, which increases magnesium excretion through the urine.

Avoid Certain Medications

Many medications deplete magnesium, such as diuretics (like HCTZ or furosemide), PPIs (like Prilosec and Nexium), corticosteroids (like prednisone), and antibiotics (like tetracyclines and Ciprofloxacin). They bind to it and reduce its absorption.

Chronic Diseases

Chronic diseases like diabetes, kidney disease, and Crohn’s impairs magnesium absorption and increase the amount that leaves the body.

Chronic Stress and Lack of Sleep

Chronic stress, lack of sleep, or poor-quality sleep also depletes magnesium levels because of the increase in cortisol. High cortisol increases the body’s demand for magnesium to manage the stress response. As a result, your body uses more magnesium and increases the amount that is excreted through your urine.

How to Increase Magnesium Intake?

There are a few ways to increase your intake.

The cheapest and easiest way is to incorporate more leafy greens into your diet. However, you won’t restore a deficiency with leafy greens alone. You also will need a magnesium supplement.

We recommend 200-400 mg daily if you suspect a mild deficiency.

If you have a moderate to severe deficiency, we recommend 400-600 mg daily.

To determine the level of deficiency, a general rule of thumb is that if you have a poor or decent diet but drink a lot of coffee, you should take 300-400 mg.

If you are battling an illness or taking a few medications, you may need more than 400 mg. We recommend working with a functional medicine doctor or a naturopath, as they can assess what’s best for you.

What Type of Magnesium Should I Buy?

Companies make many types of magnesium supplements: Glycinate, Citrate, Lactate, Malate, Theonate, and Oxide.

First, never purchase supplements with magnesium oxide. Despite its lower price, it is of the worst quality and has extremely poor bioavailability.

Magnesium Lactate has moderate bioavailability.

The next three have the same level of bioavailability, moderate to high: Magnesium Citrate, Taurinate, and Malate.

Citrate in high doses (400 mg or more daily) can cause loose stools for some people, but Malate does not. Malic acid is helpful for those suffering with fibromyalgia, so magnesium malate may be a good option for those individuals.

Taurinate is best for people looking to boost cardiovascular health due to the molecule taurine attached to it.

These last two have the highest bioavailability: Magnesium Glycinate and Threonate. In high doses, they do not cause loose stools, and Threonate can cross the blood-brain barrier. Furthermore, Threonate does everything Glycinate does.

We cycle a couple of different good-quality brands. We use

While these are not the only good brands, they are the ones we use.

Magnesium deficiencies are common. Take control of your nerve health and evaluate your diet, lifestyle, and magnesium intake. Don’t let a magnesium deficiency hold you back from recovering and living the vibrant life you deserve!

Struggling with Neuropathy?

Dr. Coppola and Dr. Monteiro’s dedication to combating neuropathy is deeply personal, stemming from Dr. Monteiro’s experience with her mother’s severe chemo-induced neuropathy. This personal journey fueled their commitment to develop a systematic, drug-free approach to reversing neuropathy.

They founded the San Antonio Neuropathy Center, where they’ve successfully treated over 18,000 patients over the past two decades. Their acclaimed book, “Defeat Neuropathy Now in Spite of Your Doctor,” along with their neuropathy product line, stands as a testament to their expertise and innovative solutions.

Recognized as leading neuropathy specialists in America, Dr. Coppola and Dr. Monteiro offer a beacon of hope for those diagnosed with this challenging condition. If you or a loved one is seeking relief from neuropathy, reach out to us at 844 400-0101 or email us through our contact page – Click here.

Your path to healing can start today.