Everything you Need to Know About Our Favourite Mineral
What is the symbol of magnesium? Magnesium, written chemically as Mg, is one of the alkaline-earth metals of group 2 on the periodic table. It is the lightest structural metal, with compounds that have a wide range of uses ranging from construction to medicine. Magnesium is one of the elements that are essential in sustaining all cellular life.
Magnesium makes up 2 percent of the Earth’s crust, and it is the third most plentiful element dissolved in seawater, but it can not be found in nature in its purest form - as a silvery, light, metal. The element is found in over 60 minerals that only occur naturally as a compound with other elements, like carbon, calcium, and oxygen.
The metal, once purified, can be mixed with other metals to be used for certain daily items. The most common commercially used magnesium elemental compounds are dolomite, magnesite, brucite, carnallite, and olivine, with of the most common mixtures, or alloys, being magnesium and aluminium; which can be used in making car bodies, drinks cans, and other items that need to be strong, as well as light.
Increased magnesium in the blood also boasts multiple health benefits. It is involved with over 300 reactions in the human body and increasing your intake of magnesium with foods and OHMG water, these reactions will have an easier time occurring within your body - ensuring that your body runs as efficiently as possible.
What is Magnesium Made Of?
As with most elements, magnesium is born in the stars. It is created under these extreme solar temperatures, produced from the fusion of helium and neon. According to the U.S. Geological Survey, it is the eighth-most abundant element in the entire universe.
Magnesium is also used biologically, as it is a part of chlorophyll - the green pigment found in plants that are used for photosynthesis; the extraction of energy from sunlight. Magnesium is also crucial to human life, contributing to over 300 biological processes in the human body.
What is Magnesium in the Body?
According to the U.S Library of Medicine, in order to aid over 300 processes in the human body, the recommended amount of magnesium that adult women should take is about 320 milligrams per day, and 420 milligrams per day in adult men. The richest natural sources of magnesium from food is found in fruits, vegetables, nuts, legumes, and whole grains.
Magnesium supplements are also a good option to increase your magnesium intake. If attempting to go over the daily recommended limit of magnesium, check with your doctor or pharmacist. A healthy level of magnesium can aid a variety of medical conditions like high blood pressure, premenstrual syndrome, and even diabetes. It can even aid mentally with anxiety, depression, and sleep.
Types of Magnesium
There’s a wide range of magnesium compounds out there. With uses ranging from use in construction, all the way to the medical field, you may be wondering which kind of magnesium is either A: best for you, or B: what kind you’re using.
Below, we explain the mainstream kinds of magnesium that you’ll find on the market, where you’ll find them and their uses within their field.
What is Magnesium Threonate?
Magnesium threonate is the salt formed during the mixing of the mineral magnesium, and threonic acid; a water-soluble substance which is generated during the metabolic breakdown of vitamin C.
Magnesium threonate is one of the most easily absorbed forms of magnesium for the body, and research suggests that it may be the most effective type of magnesium for increasing levels of magnesium within brain cells.
This is especially good as magnesium is proven to be beneficial for your mental wellbeing and can help to manage certain brain disorders, as the mineral helps to aid with the symptoms of anxiety and depression.
What is Magnesium Citrate?
This form of magnesium is bound with citric acid which is naturally found in citrus fruits, like lemons. Citric acid is also frequently used as a food preservative and flavour enhancer in the food production industry.
As one of the most common and widely available formulations of magnesium, research suggests that it is highly bioavailable; meaning that your digestive system has an easier time absorbing it than other forms.
It is also suggested that magnesium citrate acts as a calming agent which can help to quell the symptoms of depression and anxiety, however, more research is needed.
What is Magnesium Glycinate?
Magnesium glycinate is formed with the elemental form of magnesium and the amino acid of glycine. This amino acid is used by your body in order to help with the production of proteins. It also occurs in multiple foods that are rich in protein, which include fish, meat, dairy, and various legumes.
Standalone, glycine is used as a dietary supplement that can improve sleep and treat a range of conditions that cause inflammation, such as heart disease and diabetes.
Magnesium glycinate is also easily absorbed by the body, and may even have calming properties. Although evidence is limited, and more research is needed, magnesium glycinate may have properties that help to reduce anxiety, depression, stress, and insomnia.
What is Magnesium Oxide?
Burning a strip of pure magnesium ribbon will produce a white powder composed of magnesium oxide, MgO, as well as an extremely bright white light during the burning.
Magnesium oxide is a naturally occurring mineral. It is white in colour and is a thermally stable powder. The ionic bonds between magnesium and oxygen are very strong, which makes this powder insoluble in water. If you’re looking to melt this substance, it will take a very high temperature (2851.85˚C). This high melting point, as well as great chemical stability, makes this an important mineral in the refractory industry as a lining for furnaces, crucibles, as well as other fireproofing uses.
As a basic substance, it is also useful in the medical field. There are magnesium-containing medications that act in providing relief to those suffering from heartburn and upset stomachs by neutralising excess acid. Magnesium also treats paper, preventing the paper from rotting due to its natural acidity.
Magnesium peroxide, MgO2, is the product of combining magnesium oxide with hydrogen peroxide in an exothermic reaction. This is a useful mineral in agriculture and for water treatment as it “fixes” magnesium deficiencies within soil, acts as a source of oxygen. It also reduces contaminants and regulates the pH level of water.
Magnesium oxide combined with water creates magnesium hydroxide, Mg(OH)2, also known as milk of magnesia. Which holds antacid and laxative properties. It works by drawing hydroxide ions into the stomach, mediating stomach acid and retaining water in the intestines.
What is Magnesium Carbonate?
Occurring in nature as magnesite, magnesium carbonate is an ore that is resistant to very high temperatures. Magnesium carbonate is the product of magnesium hydroxide absorbing carbon dioxide and water. It has widespread applications, too. From antacid and laxative use, to use as a fertiliser, as well as the manufacture of heat resistant materials, food additives for anti-caking, and even in cosmetics to increase opacity.
What is Magnesium Sulfate & Sulfide?
Magnesium sulfate, MgSO4, is made by mixing magnesium hydroxide with sulfur dioxide and oxygen. This mixture has multiple uses in medicine as an anticonvulsant, calcium channel blocker, anaesthesia, tocolytic agent, anti-arrhythmic drug, and analgesic. It is also useful in the industrial field, where it can be added to cement and fertilisers. It is also useful when creating homemade lawn food.
Magnesium sulfide is better known as Epsom salt, a common tool used by people with sore and achy muscles to alleviate aches and pains by soaking in an Epsom salt bath. This works as the salt dissociates into magnesium and sulfate ions which are supposed to soak through your skin during a bath to alleviate sore muscles by increasing magnesium levels in your blood.
Epsom salt absolutely cannot be ingested, as eating too much can have serious consequences like cardiac arrest and bradyarrhythmia.
What is Magnesium Citrate?
Magnesium citrate is a form of magnesium often taken as a supplement. It is a salt, an ionic compound, that contains positive magnesium ions and negative citrate ions - the same negative ions that form citric acid when it is combined with positive hydrogen ions. This compound is formed with a combination of magnesium oxide and citric acid.
Magnesium citrate is soluble in water, so it can be used as a powder, capsule, or liquid in order to enter the body. It makes for a great source of dietary magnesium which absorbs easily into the bloodstream and provides various benefits like digestion regulation, muscle and nerve support, bone strength, and aiding with heart disease and kidney disease.
What is Magnesium Stearate?
Magnesium stearate is a fine white powder that sticks to your skin and is greasy to the touch. It is a simple salt that is made up of two substances. One, a saturated fat called stearic acid, and magnesium. It is primarily used in medication capsules as a flow agent and prevents individual ingredients in a capsule from sticking to each other.
While it is possible to create medicine capsules without magnesium stearate, it is more difficult to guarantee the quality and consistency of those capsules. It is also used to delay the breakdown and absorption of medication to ensure that they’re absorbed in the correct area of the bowel.
Upgrade your Life with OHMG Magnesium Water
What is magnesium water? OHMG magnesium water helps you achieve your daily target intake of magnesium in order to reap the most benefits for your body. In order to maintain a healthy lifestyle, a good intake of magnesium ensures that your body can continue functioning at its very best.
Whether you need that little bit more energy during sport, you need help winding down, or you’ve been looking to reduce your symptoms of depression and anxiety, magnesium offers a wide range of benefits that you can’t benefit from if you don’t have a diet rich in magnesium.
OHMG water can aid you with your mission to increase your magnesium intake. After having a better diet, you’ll notice an improvement in your overall health over time. OHMG makes increasing your magnesium intake easier than ever. Each can contains 56 mg of magnesium and should be consumed as part of a healthy and balanced diet alongside other magnesium-rich foods.
With a range of temptingly tantalising flavours that dance on your tongue, OHMG can be a prominent part of your healthy lifestyle journey.
