My goal in this blog is to provide information for good health both mental and physical. One cannot talk about great health without talking about Magnesium.

Let me explain that although my professional background is in psychology, physical health has been an important field of independent study since junior high school.  Our bodies are the most critical piece of equipment that we have. It is important that we know how to maintain them. The topics that I address are ones that I have learned through study and/or personal experience. The topic of Magnesium is very personal to me because of my family history.

In the last post, we discussed the importance of Alkaline water. Alkalinity is important because the blood pH must be alkaline! Thus, the importance of the Alkaline minerals for our health.

There are four major Alkaline minerals that we all need for good health and to keep our blood pH Alkaline: Calcium, Magnesium, Potassium and Sodium. We need so much of these minerals they are called “bulk” minerals. Yet, you have probably only heard about Calcium and many people take Calcium supplements.

What most people don’t realize is that taking one Alkaline mineral without the others isn’t very helpful!

Before I talk about the specific importance of Magnesium, I want to give you a brief overview of how the Alkaline minerals work together. You see, it is really a biochemical equation.

• Calcium needs Magnesium to work properly
• Magnesium needs Potassium to work properly
• Potassium needs Sodium to work properly

The volume of the Alkaline minerals that we need in descending order (Most to least) has the following list:

• Calcium
• Magnesium
• Potassium
• Sodium

If there is a shortage, the Alkaline mineral that depends on it can’t do its job properly. That’s why it’s important to get plenty of the Alkaline minerals and let the body balance the equation!

So the question is, what happens when you don’t have enough Magnesium to balance the equation?

There is a great book you can read that tells you all about it and I’ll post it at the end of this article. However, let me tell you about my personal experience with magnesium deficiency.

As I mentioned in the post about Alkaline water, by the end of 2005, I had become seriously acidic. This means that my Alkaline mineral reserve was depleted. In other words, I was in deficiency mode for Magnesium.

Here’s what I noticed: cramps in my feet and calves, cramps in my hands if I did simple things like turning a screwdriver, aching kidneys and many other issues right off the list from the book I’m going to recommend. However, the most disturbing was heart arrhythmia.

I can tell you there is no worse feeling than to feel your heart not working properly. I can remember being in bed at night and wondering if I was going to die. Very unpleasant.

When I was clued in by my medical clinic that I was too acid, I started researching how to resolve it. This led me to Alkaline water and a study of the Alkaline minerals. When I read the books, The Magnesium Miracle and the Magnesium Factor, I discovered the root cause of my symptoms.

The main thing I discovered was that I have a problem processing magnesium. This explains why as an infant, I had convulsions. I need a great deal more magnesium than most people. It also explained why my father and his father died early (61 & 64). They had been smokers which depletes magnesium.

Following the recommendations in the books, I began to recover. Now, my heart is fine and no more cramps.

I hope you read at least one of the books I recommend. The Magnesium Miracle is much less technical than The Magnesium Factor so you will probably enjoy it more.

To your great health!