Magnesium Health Watch

This recent, well-researched article in Natural Products Marketplace addresses the safety issue with magnesium stearate.  We previously discussed it here. The author suggests that there is no potential hazard to blood cholesterol levels. Furthermore, the amounts of stearate and stearic acid used as a binder in tablets and capsules is too small to

cause harm.  In fact, you ingest more stearic acid from the food you eat every day than you encounter in a tablet.  As for the potential effects of stearic acid on immunity, this article questions some recent scientific findings where stearic acid affected the immunity of  human cells:

“So would these in vitro results be similar in humans? Likely not. Consider a study in which immune competence was tested by a battery of T- and B-lymphocyte stimulation tests and also by natural killer (NK) cell activity in a group of 94 men receiving different fatty acids, including stearic acid. Stearic acid was actually found to have a positive effect on immunity, particularly NK cell activity. In any case, whether the effects on immunity were positive or negative, the amount of stearic acid and magnesium stearate found in dietary supplements is still too insignificant to matter.”

Read the full article at Natural Products Marketplace.

A magnesium stearate debate lives on, and while we can’t offer up any answers, we found an interesting piece by a nutritionist who presents both sides of the arguments nicely.  For more information, check out our other article on magnesium stearate

Basically, magnesium stearate is used in places like vitamin supplements and foods for its binding properties as a lubricant.  They are sometimes made by hydrogenating oils (ick) but sometimes not.  As we all know, hydrogenated oil is not healthy, and in vitamin supplements, offers no health benefits.  Apparently, the molecules altered during this process may release contaminants which are found in the stearates.  If you take a daily supplement, which inevitably includes magnesium stearate, those milligrams can really add up to thousands per year.  We try so hard to avoid certain oils in our diet, but many people don’t realize they are ingesting them as part of their vitamin supplements.  Furthermore, it may prevent absorption of some vitamins!  Finally, magnesium stearate, when created through hydrogenation is considered a hazardous substance by the Environmental Protection Agency.

Others have said claims that magnesium stearate and stearic acid are dangerous are totally unfounded.  Their quoted studies claiming its ill effects are misleading and  you’re forced to question the agendas of those who are trying so hard to eradicate its use.

“I wrote to David Rowland, nutritionist and operator of CNC Vitamost supplements, to ask him about magnesium stearate in supplements. “The Merck Index (10th ed.) states that stearic acid occurs as a glyceride in tallow and other animal fats and oils, as well as in some vegetable oils – and that it can also be prepared synthetically by hydrogenating cottonseed and other vegetable oils. Merck doesn’t state that all stearic acid is made by hydrogenation, only that some of it can be. Certainly, no responsible manufacturer of vitamins would use any hydrogenated product as a raw material – it would be counterproductive to the intended use of the product.”

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