Logo NHC

Does Magnesium Help ADHD & Autism Symptoms? [Infographic]

Magnesium-Deficiency Signs, Effects, Food Sources

Millions suffer daily from not having enough magnesium and they aren’t even aware of it.

Magnesium is one of the most important minerals necessary for human survival, serving hundreds of functions within our cells.

Magnesium builds and strengthens our bones, relaxes our muscles, transmits nerve signals, contributes to a healthy immune response, produces enzymes responsible for energy, regulates blood pressure and essential vitamins and minerals in our body.

The problem is… many of us aren’t getting enough and our food choices, drug dependency and stress is stripping our bodies of this much needed nutrient.

Since most of the foods on the grocery shelves are highly processed, the nutrients and essential minerals, like magnesium, are being depleted. The phosphates in soda pop, for instance, bind magnesium making it unusable. Foods high in saturated fat reduce magnesium absorption in your intestines and a diet high in sugar basically tells your kidneys to excrete more magnesium from your body.

If your diet contains white sugar, white bread, white rice or other processed foods – you are most likely deficient in magnesium.

Aging, stress and sickness all lead to magnesium deficiency as well as drinking too much alcohol or taking prescription/over the counter drugs. Antibiotics, birth control pills, asthma medication and diuretics are just a few examples of the types of drugs that rid your body of magnesium.

Dr. Mark Sircus, Ac., OMD, DM, a Doctor of Oriental and Pastoral Medicine,  is an author of many health-related books based on medical science and long years of clinical experience. In his article, Magnesium Deficiency Symptoms and Diagnosis, he expresses his feelings on this topic - 

Because magnesium deficiency is largely overlooked, millions of Americans suffer needlessly or are having their symptoms treated with expensive drugs when they could be cured with magnesium supplementation. Modern medicine is supposed to help people not hurt them but with their almost total ignorance of magnesium doctors end up hurting more than they help for many of the medical interventions drive down magnesium levels when they should be driving them up. Many if not most pharmaceutical drugs drive magnesium levels into very dangerous zones and surgery done without increasing magnesium levels is much more dangerous then surgery done with. The foundation of medical arrogance is actually medical ignorance and the only reason ignorance and arrogance rule the playing field of medicine is a greed lust for power and money. Human nature seems to be at its worst in modern medicine when it should be at its best.

Magnesium Supplement ad

How Magnesium May Help ADHD& Autism Symptoms

Our bodies are not absorbing the nutrients they need even when they are present in the gut. If we don’t have a healthy gut flora the nutrients we should be getting from healthy food choices will not absorb properly. Absorption of nutrients depends largely on intestinal health, which seems to be a big problem with the majority of Autism Syndrome and ADHD.

These days, millions of children are being diagnosed with Attention-Deficit Disorder (ADHD) or Autism Syndrome Disorder (ASD) due to symptoms that mimic magnesium and vitamin B6 deficiency.

(See this article on Natural Ways to Manage ADD & ADHD Symptoms)

If your child experiences impaired communication, social difficulties, restlessness, tantrums, can’t keep still, constant body rocking, grinding teeth, hiccuping, noise sensitivity, poor attention span, poor concentration, irritability, aggressiveness, ready to explode and easily stressed… you may want to consider feeding him more magnesium rich foods or have him take a  magnesium supplement, as these are some symptoms of Mg deficiency. In many studies, vitamin B6 was needed along with magnesium to see improvement.

(Of course, it’s best to  find a naturopath or talk to your doctor first)

It seems like doctors are quick to diagnose kids with ADHD or Autism when they experience symptoms that may simply stem from a variety of nutrient deficiencies. Isn’t  it ironic that a child with a magnesium deficiency may act an awful lot like a child who has been diagnosed with ADHD or Autism?

The University of Maryland Medical Center points out –

Some experts believe that children with ADHD may be showing the effects of mild magnesium deficiency. In one preliminary study of 75 magnesium-deficient children with ADHD, those who received magnesium supplements showed an improvement in behavior compared to those who did not receive the supplements.

ReasearchAutism.net sites plenty of research claiming that people with Autism benefit from high doses of magnesium and B6. One claim says –

There are over 20 studies of vitamin B6 with Magnesium for autism, including 12 double-blind, placebo-controlled studies, making it one of most studied treatments for autism. Almost all of these studies found that 45-50% of children and adults with autism benefited from high-dose supplementation of vitamin B6 with magnesium.

In fact, many health experts believe these common cognitive/behavioral disorders are caused by an unhealthy gut flora and toxic overload. Mental and behavioral related issues are largely intestinal and gut related.

I would love to see what would happen to the ADHD/ASD epidemic if all kids were eating a healthy organic diet, getting the proper amount of nutrients daily and taking necessary steps to reduce toxins.

Check out the infographic below for a list of  signs and effects of magnesium deficiency as well as foods high in magnesium.

Magnesium Deficiency Infographic

Check out this video featuring Dr. Mark Sircus on the topic of Magnesium Deficiency – No Test Required.

Read more from a couple of our sources:

 Studies confirm benefits of vitamin B6/magnesium therapy for autism, PDD, and ADHD

What is Magnesium? How it Functions in the Body

Enhanced by Zemanta