Joint Health and Magnesium

The structure and composition of joint tissue is clearly important to maintain. Reinforcing cartilage with proper nutrients promotes the longevity of joints and in many ways prevents inflammation from occurring because one is less prone to injury. The idea is that healthy joints prevent unhealthy inflammatory response. However, as we age, collagen and hyaluronic acid degrade. Despite the benefits of supplementation, the degenerative process will continue, resulting in inflammation because our joints will be less optimal. This inflammation will further inhibit joint function.

This is where the vicious cycle comes into play. “Each one of these conditions (i.e., inflammation and connective tissue degradation) lead to increases in each other,” explains David J. Foreman, R.Ph., N.D., author and host of the syndicated radio show, The Herbal Pharmacist. “The more inflammation you have, the more degrading of connective tissue occurs. This loss of connective tissue then leads to more inflammation and, in turn, more degrading of connective tissue.”

In a breakthrough study entitled “Magnesium and the Inflammatory Response…”1 The study shows that at the cellular level, magnesium reduces inflammation. In the animal model used, magnesium deficiency is created when an inflammatory condition is produced. Increasing magnesium intake decreases the inflammation.

A more recent study published in The European Journal of Clinical Nutrition in 2014, revealed an association between increased dietary magnesium and lower levels of C-reactive protein (CRP), an inflammation marker.

Reference:

1. Mazur, Andrzej, Jeanette A. M. Maier, Edmond Rock, Elyett Gueux, Wojciech Nowacki, Yves Rayssiguier. “Magnesium and the Inflammatory Response: Potential Physiopathological    Implications.” Archives of Biochemistry & Biophysics 458, no. 1 (February 1, 2007): 48–56

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