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Health Magnesium-rich foods lower the risk of heart disease and diabetes
A healthy diet can help protect you from disease. The important thing is to know which foods contain the most nutrients and how they work. A particularly valuable mineral is magnesium. This also reduces the risk of cardiovascular disease and diabetes, according to a new study.
Positive health effects
Many athletes rely on magnesium, because the mineral helps against pain in leg cramps. But the mineral has much more positive effects on our health. For example, scientists from the US recently reported that magnesium is very effective against high blood pressure in many cases. And Chinese researchers have now discovered that adequate dietary magnesium intake reduces the risk of heart disease, diabetes and stroke.
Sufficient magnesium intake with food can reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease, diabetes and stroke, according to a new study. (Image: bit24 / fotolia.com) Vegetables, whole grains and nuts
This was the result of a Chinese meta-study with data from more than one million people from nine countries, reports "Wissenschaft aktuell". Thus, the greater the consumption of high magnesium foods, the lower the disease risks and overall mortality rates during the study period.
Therefore, it would make sense to increase the consumption of foods such as green leafy vegetables, whole grains, cocoa and nuts. As the scientists write in the journal "BMC Medicine", this could help to prevent diseases caused by magnesium deficiency and to improve public health.
Magnesium deficiency promotes diseases
"Magnesium deficiency is linked to a range of diseases, but so far there has been no convincing evidence for the relationship between a magnesium diet and health risks," said Drs. Fudi Wang from Zhejiang University in Hangzhou, according to the journal "EurekAlert!".
"Our findings provide important nutritional information that can reduce health risks associated with magnesium deficiency," said the researcher.
Even with sufficient food supply, up to 15 percent of the population would have low blood levels for magnesium. According to the report of "Wissenschaft aktuell", the human body contains about 24 grams of minerals, 60 percent of them in the skeleton.
The German Society of Nutrition (DGE) recommends intake of 350 to 400 milligrams of magnesium for men and 300 to 350 milligrams for women. The nutrient is vital because it is needed for the function of many enzymes of the metabolism. A magnesium deficiency can be deadly.
Lower risk of diabetes and coronary heart disease
The Chinese scientists reported data from 40 individual studies that examined the relationship between dietary magnesium intake and various health risks.
The research team found that those with the highest levels of magnesium were less likely than others to develop diabetes or coronary heart disease, and more rarely had a stroke.
It is said that a 100 milligram increase in daily magnesium intake would reduce the risk of heart failure by 22 percent, stroke by seven percent, and diabetes risk by 19 percent, and reduce overall mortality by ten percent.
Americans and Europeans consume too little magnesium
Although the study results suggest that increased magnesium intake could reduce several disease risks, researchers say that it is possible that unknown factors not included in the statistical analysis play an additional role.
In the US and Europe, the daily intake of magnesium by food is on average less than the recommended amounts. Whether the intake of magnesium supplements as a dietary supplement would have comparable effects on health, is not to say based on the results. (Ad)