Is Magnesium the Missing Link in Your Diet?
Dec 07,2004 12:00
by
Rachel
Jot down your guesses--no peeking until you finish!!1. Magnesium deficiency has been linked to asthma, chronic fatigue syndrome, bronchitis, migraines, muscle cramps, depression, diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease, and sudden death. T or F?
2. Consuming too much calcium relative to magnesium can weaken your bones. T or F?
By Rachel Albert-Matesz, B.A.
Jot down your guesses--no peeking until you finish!!
1. Magnesium deficiency has been linked to asthma, chronic fatigue syndrome, bronchitis, migraines, muscle cramps, depression, diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease, and sudden death. T or F?
2. Consuming too much calcium relative to magnesium can weaken your bones. T or F?
3. Magnesium is required for more than 300 enzyme reactions in the body. T or F?
4. Diuretics deplete your magnesium stores. T or F?
5. Iceberg lettuce is rich in magnesium. T or F?
6. Nuts, seeds, and avocados are excellent magnesium sources. T or F?
7. Most Americans consume only 3/4 of the RDA for magnesium? T or F?
8. Anthropologist estimate early man consumed 800 to 1500 mg/magnesium/day. T or F?
9. Drinking water is a good source of magnesium. T or F?
10. Bottled water is a good source of magnesium. T or F?
11. Modern farming methods have increased the magnesium content of foods. T or F?
12. Fish is a great magnesium source. T or F?
13. Zucchini, summer squash, potatoes, brewer?s yeast, beans, and brown rice are abundant in magnesium. T or F?
14. Peaches and figs are rich in magnesium. T or F?
15. Hallucinations suffered during withdrawal from alcohol overdose may be caused by magnesium deficiency. T or F?
THE ANSWERS:
1. True.
2. True!
3. True.
4. True.
5. False. But kale, collards, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, beet and turnip greens are!
6. True.
7. True.
8. True. To learn more, read The Paleo Diet by Loren Cordain, Ph.D
9. True. ?...for early humans and throughout most of human history, the single most available source of magnesium has been drinking water? say Drs. Michael and Mary Dan Eades, authors of The Protein Power Life Plan.
10. False. Very few commercial ?mineral? waters contain significant amounts of magnesium. Reverse osmosis and distilled waters are devoid of magnesium and other life sustaining minerals. If you use such water, buy a bottle of Concentrace? Liquid Mineral Drops to add highly absorbable minerals to your drinking water.
11. False. Modern farming methods have depleted soils. Magnesium content of our food supply has plummeted over the past century.
12. True---especially sole, cod, flounder, halibut, salmon, shrimp, and raw oysters.
13. True.
14. True.
15. True!
How many did you miss?
1 to 3: Eat 1 to 2 cups of cooked dark leafy greens each day.
4 to 6: Also add 1 cup zucchini, summer squash, potatoes, beans, or brown rice to your daily diet.
7 to 10: Also eat 1/4 cup almonds, cashews, peanuts, sunflower or pumpkin seeds or 2 tablespoons nut or seed butter each day.
11 to 15: Also eat 1 serving of fish and/or 1/4 cup dried figs or apricots 3 times/week.
Rachel Albert-Matesz, a freelance food & health writer, healthy cooking coach, cooking instructor, and personal chef based in in Phoenix, AZ. For info about her classes, services and The Garden of Eating A Produce-Dominated Diet & Cookbook (Planetary Press, 2004), visit http://www.thegardenofeatingdiet.com/ or email her at: chefrachel@thegardenofeatingdiet.com.