Magnesium for inflammation and vascular dysfunction in postmenopausal women

Magnesium participates in hundreds of important functions in the body, but as they authors of this study published recently in the journal Diabetes Care note:

"Although magnesium may favorably affect metabolic outcomes, few studies have investigated the role of magnesium intake in systemic inflammation and endothelial dysfunction in humans."

The endothelium is the living lining of blood vessels, alive with functions. The authors correlated magnesium intake with plasma concentrations of high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP), interleukin-6 (IL-6), tumor necrosis factor-α receptor 2 (TNF-α-R2), and other markers of inflammation and endothelial function. Their data amounted to this straightforward conclusion:"High magnesium intake is associated with lower concentrations of certain markers of systemic inflammation and endothelial dysfunction in postmenopausal women."Don't forget that suboptimal magnesium levels are extremely common, become more likely with stress of various kinds (long-haul air travel for example), and magnesium excretion is increased by alcohol consumption. I have observed over thirty years that it is relatively very rare for lower extremity muscle cramps that occur at rest to not subside when magnesium status is restored. When you make the cramps go away with magnesium you're accomplishing numerous other benefits.Note: I have found that when the usually well tolerated bioavailable forms such as magnesium glycinate at appropriate dosages cause diarrhea, there is always a pre-existing intestinal inflammation that must be diagnosed and treated.