Health

Magnesium and Cardiovascular Health – What Athletes Need to Know

Heart health is essential for everyone, but athletes must pay close attention. Magnesium is a crucial part of your cardiovascular system, helping to keep your heart healthy. It also helps to maintain the integrity of your arteries and prevent plaque build-up.

Magnesium Helps Keep Your Heart Healthy

What are the advantages of magnesium for athletes? Your heart needs a lot of nutrients to work correctly, but magnesium is one of the most important. It’s involved in more than 300 different biochemical reactions, including controlling your blood pressure and lowering heart palpitations. A growing body of research shows that magnesium is a crucial nutrient for cardiovascular health. It helps maintain a healthy heart, regulates your blood pressure, and even lowers your risk for stroke. When your body doesn’t have enough magnesium, it causes your heart to beat irregularly and flutter. This condition is called atrial fibrillation, or AFib for short. This is a severe problem because the rhythm can lead to stroke, death, and even heart failure if not treated quickly. But magnesium can help to reverse these problems and improve your heart health. Studies show that magnesium can be used to treat atrial fibrillation and ventricular and supraventricular arrhythmias. But before you start taking a supplement, consult with your doctor. You can find magnesium in various foods, including fatty fish like salmon and mackerel. The average adult should get at least 700 mg of magnesium per day. But some people may need more than this, significantly if they’re depleted of the mineral through diet or other factors such as a leaky gut, stress, or medications.

Control Blood Pressure

Magnesium is an essential nutrient involved in regulating blood pressure. High blood pressure can be dangerous, increasing your heart disease and stroke risk. While many people with high blood pressure must take medication, magnesium is also a natural way to lower stress. It significantly impacts blood vessels and vascular tone, which helps relax them and improve circulation. A recent study shows magnesium can significantly reduce systolic and diastolic blood pressure. Researchers examined more than 540 participants who took magnesium supplements ranging from 365 to 450 mg daily for up to three months. Compared to control groups, those taking magnesium had average reductions of 4.18 mm Hg in systolic blood pressure and 2.27 mm Hg in diastolic blood pressure. The researchers suggest that these average reductions could be clinically relevant, reducing the risk of heart failure, cardiovascular disease, and stroke. Getting enough magnesium is simple and easy, as it’s found naturally in various foods. Some examples include low-fat dairy products, fruits, and vegetables.

Control Heart Palpitations

Magnesium helps regulate the movement of electrolytes within the heart tissue. When these electrolytes are too low, a person may experience heart palpitations. In most cases, these palpitations are harmless, though they can be more annoying if they occur alongside other symptoms such as pain and intense panting. However, if these heart palpitations arise more frequently than usual or are accompanied by other health problems, you should seek medical attention. There are several ways to increase magnesium levels, including eating more magnesium-rich foods and taking supplements. It’s best to consult a doctor before significantly changing your diet or starting a supplement regimen. The most common form of magnesium in dietary supplements is magnesium citrate. Other forms include glycinate, magnesium oxide, and chelate. Some of these formulations are more easily absorbed than others. Other nutrients often used with magnesium for controlling palpitations include coenzyme Q10, d-ribose powder, and l-carnitine. These nutrients can help to boost ATP production, shuttling energy to heart muscle cells and reducing stress. There are many ways to prevent and treat abnormal heart rhythms. But magnesium is essential for managing ventricular tachycardia and ventricular fibrillation, which can lead to heart failure and even death.

Prevent Stroke

Getting enough magnesium is essential for your overall health. The NIH recommends adults consume at least 310 to 420 milligrams per day of this mineral. You can get this amount from whole foods and dietary supplements. Magnesium is a critical mineral that helps develop muscle strength, bone health, and cardiovascular health. It can also help with sleep, anxiety, and inflammation. Many studies show that consuming adequate amounts of magnesium is linked to a reduced risk of stroke. These studies have found that individuals who have higher levels of magnesium are less likely to suffer from stroke, even when they take into account other factors such as blood pressure, diabetes, age, smoking, high cholesterol, physical activity, vitamin supplementation, and alcohol consumption. The studies examining this relationship were generally well-designed and exhibited high homogeneity. Additionally, they carefully adjusted for potential confounding factors such as gender and other dietary elements. Despite the promising results of these studies, there is a need for further research into this area. It is also essential to understand that different types of stroke have other relationships with magnesium.