Blood sugar regulation is important, so we don’t develop metabolic imbalances which can damage our tissues, increase our hunger hormones, deprive cells of energy and ultimately lead to weight gain and more serious conditions such as diabetes (type 2).
Magnesium is a very important mineral directly involved in maintaining healthy blood sugar levels by regulating the action of insulin, a hormone that lowers your blood sugar. Eating too many sugary foods can increase the body’s insulin as it tries to control the sometimes dangerous amounts of sugar entering the blood.
Chronically elevated insulin causes our cells to become less sensitive, resulting in ‘insulin resistance’ a health condition which can ultimately lead to type 2 diabetes.
3 Ways Magnesium helps improve blood sugar metabolism
1. Magnesium helps lower blood sugar levels.
Magnesium encourages the uptake of sugar into the cells; where it can be used for producing energy.
2. Magnesium may improve the insulin sensitivity of cells.
Research indicates that magnesium plays a role in activating insulin-sensing proteins, improving the cells sensitivity to insulin.
3. Magnesium helps lower insulin levels.
Research clearly shows that Magnesium supplementation can lower fasting insulin levels and that Magnesium deficiency is associated with higher insulin levels and insulin resistance.
In a very recent study published in The Journal of Nutrition, researchers looked at over 52,000 people in 15 different studies, which confirmed that a higher intake of Magnesium resulted in lower fasting blood sugar and lower fasting insulin levels.
Choosing the right form of Magnesium with clinically proven bioavailability is important. Your healthcare professional can assess your Magnesium Status to prescribe the correct therapeutic dose of Magnesium.
To find out more about your Magnesium levels and the benefits of Magnesium, you can start with the online Magnesium Minute Survey.
References:
Barbagallo M et al. Role of magnesium in insulin action, diabetes and cardio-metabolic syndrome X. Mol Aspects Med. 24(1-3):39-52, 2003. Hruby A et al. Higher Magnesium Intake Is Associated with Lower Fasting Glucose and Insulin, with No Evidence of Interaction with Select Genetic Loci, in a Meta-Analysis of 15 CHARGE Consortium Studies. J. Nutr. March 1, 2013vol. 143 no. 3 345-353. Huerta M G et al. Magnesium deficiency is associated with insulin resistance in obese children. Diabetes Care. 28(5):1175-1181, 2005. Kirii K et al. Magnesium intake and risk of self-reported type 2 diabetes among Japanese. J Am Coll Nutr. 29(2):99-106, 2010. Larsson S C et al. Magnesium intake and risk of type 2 diabetes: a meta-analysis. Journal of Internal Medicine. 262(2):208-214, 2007. Nadler, J. L., et al. Intracellular free magnesium deficiency plays a key role in increased platelet reactivity in Type II diabetes mellitus. Diabetes Care. 15(7):835-841, 1992. Rodriguez-Moran M et al. Oral magnesium supplementation improves insulin sensitivity and metabolic control in type 2 diabetic subjects: a randomized double-blind controlled trial. Diabetes Care. 26(4):1147-1152, 2003. Song Y et al. Effects of oral magnesium supplementation on glycaemic control in Type 2 diabetes: a meta-analysis of randomized double-blind controlled trials. Diabet Med. 23(10):1050-1056, 2006.