Magnesium reduces sudden cardiac death by 36%

Everybody with heart disease should be taking magnesium supplements.

It has been long suspected that low magnesium increases the incidence of sudden cardiac death, but most of the studies have been relatively small (few cases of sudden cardiac death).
In the nurses health study those with the lowest level of magnesium in their blood had a higher incidence of heart disease, the NHT FS follow-up study also suggested the same, but each only had a few sudden cardiac deaths.

A recent study of almost 10,000 normal people followed for 9 years in the Netherlands click here, showed that those with low serum magnesium level had a 36% increase in sudden cardiac death, and unexpectedly also a higher incidence of non-sudden cardiac death as well.

We often treat patients in hospital following a cardiac arrest or with severe rhythm problems with intravenous magnesium, suggesting the importance of this mineral in keeping the heart function regular.

Therefore everybody with heart disease (angina, heart attack, angioplasty, bypass surgery, palpitations and arrhythmias, hypertension, heart failure) should be taking supplemental magnesium at least 500 to 800 mg per day on a regular basis to reduce the risk of sudden death.

Because for many people, sudden death is the 1st indication of heart disease, it seems logical that all of us should be taking supplemental magnesium at least after the age of 50.

In addition to reducing the incidence of death by over 30%, magnesium also maintains a lower blood pressure, has a calming effect, relieves muscles aches spasms and cramps, and can be beneficial to prevent migraine.