Magnesium and Stress: How Your Stress and Magnesium Levels Relate
Friday, December 4th, 2009
With today’s economic stresses, there is a greater risk for vitamin and mineral deficiency. One way this happens is through alcohol consumption. Oftentimes people under financial stress will reach for alcohol to help curb their anxiety. Unfortunately, high alcohol consumption can cause a magnesium depletion in the body. (This condition is often associated with alcoholism).
What happens when you’re magnesium deficient? Problems range from poor sleep to fatigue, depression and even poor blood circulation. These things only contribute to existing stresses and a vicious cycle of mineral depletion and potentially harmful conditions ensues.
“The vicious circle of economic stress, lack of sleep, diminished immunity and magnesium depletion is evident upon an examination of the medical literature.
- Animals placed on a magnesium deficient diet will commonly develop disorganized sleep and periods of wakefulness. [Neuropsychobiology 27: 237–45, 1993]
- Sleep problems occur more frequently as adults age, making it increasingly difficult to deal with stress. Studies show magnesium supplementation partially reverses age-related sleep abnormalities. [Pharmacopsychiatry 35: 135–43, 2002]
- Chronic mental or physical stress may serve as a trigger for a heart attack or a stroke. A study of college students who were sleep deprived while studying for final exams found that stress cut the concentration of magnesium in red blood cells in half and impaired the ability of blood vessels to widen (dilate) to control blood pressure. [Clinical Cardiology 27: 223–27, 2004]“
Magnesium: Survival Mineral for a Stress-Filled World by Bill Sardi.
