Amazing Magnesium Benefits You Probably Didn’t Know About

 A person waking up in the morning.

As we are sure you can assume, magnesium is one of those things our bodies and brains can't function well without. Therefore, magnesium has plenty of benefits for our health. We're talking about the normal functioning of the heart, blood sugar levels, and, obviously, our mood. Where can we find our daily dose of magnesium? Well, you're able to "stumble upon" magnesium in nuts, seeds, beans, leafy greens, and a wide variety of other foods. However, even though it's very present in plenty of things we can consume, most folks don't have enough magnesium in their diets. If you belong to that category of people, that's all about to change. In the article below, we'll introduce you to the amazing benefits of magnesium you probably didn't know about!

#1 Magnesium helps you battle depression and anxiety

Okay, so studies have shown that the lack of magnesium is somehow connected to certain mental issues, such as depression or anxiety. Of course, we're not saying that if you lack magnesium in your body, you're going to feel depressed or agitated in any manner. However, magnesium has been known to possess an undeniable mood-improving quality. Also, there's this: increased mental stress equals magnesium loss. The environment probably won't replace it efficiently because of the activity in the HPA (a collection of three glands that control the way you battle stress). Magnesium represents a very important mineral to the brain as it's a part of just about every part of your reaction to stress.

 A worried woman sitting on the floor

Magnesium will help you battle depression and anxiety. 

#2 Magnesium helps you battle PMS symptoms

Now, we're sure that one-half or so of our readers won't care what we have to say in this paragraph, but magnesium can help women efficiently battle pre-menstrual syndrome. As we're sure the ladies know, there are a bunch of PMS symptoms that aren't that enjoyable, to say the least. We're talking about depression, insomnia, water retention, etc. Here's the best part: a study conducted in 2010 concluded that supplementing using a combo of magnesium and vitamin B-6 helps the participants with all the PMS symptoms, and they'll ease them into oblivion.

 

A person experiencing a headache. 

Say goodbye to migraine attacks with a regular, daily magnesium intake.

#3 Magnesium reduces the chances of migraine attacks

Have issues with migraine attacks? If so, you'll want to know that magnesium can prevent them! Needless to say, migraine headaches aren't easy to handle, and they often cause irritating symptoms such as nausea or vomiting. They can be quite painful to endure. Okay, so certain studies have shown that folks that deal with migraine attacks most likely also have a magnesium deficiency. Also, these studies have shown that regular intake of magnesium through supplements can prevent and treat these awful headaches. In one of the mentioned studies, a single gram of magnesium provided relief from an acute migraine headache in a faster and more effective manner than standard medicine. All in all: if you're suffering from migraine attacks, increase your magnesium intake by eating foods that contain it. 

#4 Sleep better by boosting your magnesium intake

Did you know that magnesium supplements are also used as a natural remedy for the treatment of sleep issues such as insomnia? That's right, by boosting your magnesium intake through supplements or various foods containing it, you'll enjoy a better good night's sleep. What's the connection between better sleep and magnesium? This happens because magnesium handles and regulates certain neurotransmitters involved in sleep. For instance, it regulates gamma-aminobutyric acid. One of the studies has shown that magnesium supplements lower the time it took folks involved in the study to fall asleep by about 17 minutes, which is quite amazing. Magnesium also prolongs the duration of your sleep and its quality, too.

#5 How about better digestion?

Here's the thing: it would be a bit impossible to digest the food you eat on a daily basis without the mineral we're talking about today; tell us the folks over at Consumer Opinion. If you're having some trouble with food digestion, that might signal you're dealing with a magnesium deficiency. Without the mineral, our bodies wouldn't be able to handle all the "mechanics" of digestion. They wouldn't be able to make stomach acid or carbohydrate digestive enzymes. Lastly, without magnesium, our bodies can't repair and take care of our digestive organs, such as the esophagus, stomach, intestines, pancreas, and colon.

A person with their arms on their stomach.

Normal digestion of food wouldn't be possible without magnesium.

#6 Magnesium greatly reduces the risk of kidney stones

That's right, together with chugging good amounts of water, keeping your magnesium consumption at a high level will also help you avoid dealing with kidney stones. Here's how it happens: magnesium will offset the buildup of calcium in your kidneys and prevent it from crystallizing. For folks who don't know, the thing about kidney stones is that they form once calcium binds to other minerals and crystallize.

#7 Lastly, magnesium does wonders for your heart health

Lastly, let's talk about one of the most important benefits of magnesium you probably didn't know about, but there's a fair chance that you still knew something about it. Of course, we're talking about the importance of the normal functioning of our cardiovascular systems. Studies have shown that higher levels of magnesium in the body are closely related to a reduced risk of various cardiovascular diseases such as hypertension or stroke. Also, magnesium lowers your blood pressure, thus allowing you to maintain a stable heartbeat. Without the mineral in question, the calcium inside our bodies might overstimulate our heart's muscle cells. That's clearly not good since it can result in a potentially life-threatening arrhythmia.

Closing words

That's about all that we've prepared on the benefits of magnesium you probably didn't know about. Now you have a better understanding of the mineral's importance for both our mental and physical health. Therefore, we're pretty sure that you'll somehow boost your daily magnesium intake. Whether you'll do that via supplements or by introducing certain magnesium-filled foods to your diet - it doesn't matter. What matters is that you do what's best for your body. Until next time!