You're Magnesium Deficient

You're Magnesium Deficient 

Eighty-five percent of Americans are deficient in Magnesium and don't even know it. For athletes, the rate is even higher.

You may think you're immune to this common deficiency because you eat a banana every day. But think again. You're have to consume 9 bananas each day just to meet the Recommended Daily Requirement (RDA) for magnesium for the "average American" (meaning sedentary and overweight). Any type of athletic endeavor requires more.

You might ask, "If I'm deficient and don't even know it why is it a big deal?" 

Magnesium plays a part in over 350 biochemical reactions in the human body. These reactions are crucial in energy production, protein synthesis and insulin metabolism, temperature regulation, formation of healthy bones and detoxification functions.  Lack of magnesium results in poor athletic performance and workouts, muscle cramps, difficulty losing fat, poor recovery, excessive anxiety, kidney stones,insomnia, high blood pressure and even heart arrhythmia. Lack of magnesium also affects brain function.

Why are so many of us deficient in magnesium? 

1. Crappy Soil. Magnesium has been depleted over the years and not replaced. So plants don't contain as much magnesium as they once did. Look around your local garden store. You won't see a lot of fertilizers containing magnesium.
2. Modern diets-Too many carbonated drinks-the phosphate binds with magnesium and prevents absorption. Too much sugar causes the body to excrete magnesium as does caffeine and many prescription drugs. Refined grains in bread and pasta have 97% of the magnesium stripped out of them. Mainly, most people just don't eat enough of the foods high in magnesium such as green leafy vegetables, seaweed, beans, nuts, avocados and bananas.

The RDA for men is only 420 mg/day and 310 mg/day for women. Any kind of strenuous exercise increase the need for magnesium by as much as 20%.

Your doctor can check your level of magnesium and other minerals with a simple fasted blood test.

If you are deficient, as 80-85% of Americans are, you're probably going to have to supplement you diet. If you do, purchase a good brand and choose the chelated form rather than the oxide form.