Since magnesium is intimately involved with more than 700 enzyme processes in the body, suffering low levels could have a significant impact on your health.
If you already have arthritis or you are at risk for developing this disease, getting sufficient magnesium could help, and here’s why. Magnesium modulates cell activity involved in the process of inflammation. One of the characteristics of the two most common types of arthritis-osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis-is inflammation.
Magnesium and Osteoarthritis
The amount of magnesium people consume appears to have an impact on osteoarthritis, according to a study in which 1,626 adults (age 40-83) were studied. All of the participants had their knees x-rayed and their dietary magnesium intake evaluated.Overall, 25.2 percent of the participants had knee osteoarthritis (OA). The relative odds of developing knee osteoarthritis increased as the amount of magnesium intake decreased. At the same time, the amount of joint space narrowing (characteristic of osteoarthritis) decreased as the amount of dietary magnesium declined as well.
The authors concluded that their study “supports the potential role of Mg [magnesium] in the prevention of knee OA.”
Magnesium has been shown to slow the progression of osteoarthritis in rats. Investigators gave magnesium sulfate to rats with induced osteoarthritis and observed that the mineral reduced pain and inflammation of the joints. As a bonus, the scientists found that the magnesium reduced the death of cartilage cells, which in turn slowed the progression of the disease.
Magnesium to Treat Arthritis
While the National Institutes of Health recommend 320 mg magnesium daily for women and 420 mg for men, magnesium expert Carolyn Dean, MD, ND, who is also a Medical Advisory Board Member of the Nutritional Magnesium Association, recommends 700 mg. Getting that amount from foods rich in magnesium can be a challenge, so supplements are typically necessary.Dean notes that “magnesium is a natural detoxifier which helps calcium absorption and keeps calcium from depositing into soft tissue where it can cause some forms of arthritis.”
She recommends magnesium citrate or supplements that have picometer-sized magnesium, since these promote absorption. Magnesium is often paired or taken along with calcium for bone health, and the proper ratio is 1-to-1 when taking these minerals. Both vitamin D and K2 should be taken as well to support the bones.