Magnesium is essential for energy metabolism and necessary for every major biological process. It is involved in over 300 enzyme reactions, and plays a central role in DNA synthesis. Magnesium contributes to muscle contraction and nerve conduction, and also regulates the tone of blood vessels. It also has a role in preventing colorectal cancer. Deficiency results in tremor, seizure, muscle cramps and spasm of the blood vessels of the heart and brain. Rich sources are unpolished grains, nuts, and green leafy vegetables. Recommended daily allowance is 80-420 mg/day based on age. (For more detailed information, please visit ISM’s searchable database: Nutraceutical Search.)
People with more magnesium and less copper in their blood could reduce their risk of death from cancer by as much as 50 per cent based on a cohort study of over 4,000 men aged between 30 and 60. Serum analysis of magnesium, copper and zinc levels showed that highest serum level of magnesium (0.85 millimoles per litre or more) compared to the lowest level (0.76 millimoles per litre or less) was associated with a reduction in the risk of all-cause mortality, death from cancer, and CVD of 40, 50 and 40 per cent, respectively. [Dr Nathalie Leone, Epidemiology 2006 (Vol. 17, pp. 308-314)]
Deficiency of Mg can spontaneously generate bone tumours and lymphoma. [Seelig, Adjuvant Nutrition (1994) p. 284]
Administering Mg intravenously seems to relieve neuropathic pain associated with cancer. Single 500 mg to 1 gram doses of Mg seem to relieve neuropathic pain for up to four hours. [Crosby, J Pain Symptom Manage (2000);19:35-9]
A recent prospective study among Swedish women suggested an inverse association of dietary magnesium intake with incidence of colorectal cancer. The authors assessed this association in a cohort of 35,196 Iowa women initially free of cancer and aged 55–69 years in 1986. Intakes of magnesium and other nutrients were assessed by food frequency questionnaire at baseline. Over 17 years of follow-up through 2002, 1,112 women developed colorectal cancer…The association was largely absent for rectal cancer…These findings offer further evidence that a diet high in magnesium may reduce the occurrence of colon cancer among women. [Folsom, AR, & Hong, CP (2006). Magnesium Intake and Reduced Risk of Colon Cancer in a Prospective Study of Women . American Journal of Epidemiology, 163(3), 232-5.]
CONTEXT: Animal studies have suggested that dietary magnesium may play a role in the prevention of colorectal cancer, but data in humans are lacking. OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the hypothesis that a high magnesium intake reduces the risk of colorectal cancer in women…CONCLUSION: This population-based prospective study suggests that a high magnesium intake may reduce the occurrence of colorectal cancer in women. [Larsson, SC, Bergkvist, L, & Wolk, A (2005). Magnesium intake in relation to risk of colorectal cancer in women. JAMA, 293(21), 2599.]
Magnesium is required for maintenance of genomic stability; however, data on the relationship between dietary Mg intake and lung cancer are lacking. In an ongoing lung cancer case–control study, we identified 1139 cases and 1210 matched healthy controls with data on both diet and DNA repair capacity (DRC)…Low dietary Mg intake was associated with poorer DRC and increased risk of lung cancer. [Mahabir, S et al (2008).Dietary magnesium and DNA repair capacity as risk factors for lung cancer. Carcinogenesis, 29(5), 949-56.]
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