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Magnesium & Peripheral Artery Disease

According to U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) dietary guidelines, most American adults do not eat enough magnesium, a mineral essential to health. Magnesium deficiency aggravates peripheral arterial disease (PAD), which affects about 8 million Americans. The American Heart Association finds that PAD increases heart attack or stroke risk up to five times. Adding magnesium to your diet can decrease both risks and effects of PAD.

  1. Peripheral Artery Disease (PAD)

    • Peripheral artery disease is a circulatory disease of the vessels carrying oxygen-rich blood from the heart to body tissues. In PAD, fatty deposits build up on artery walls, narrowing them and restricting blood flow to the heart, brain, kidneys, stomach, arms, legs and feet. Lack of oxygen to tissues causes fatigue, cramping, heart attack or stroke.

    PAD Frequency

    • PAD effects up to 20 percent of Americans over the age of 65. Because the risk of PAD rises with age. USDA dietary studies indicate that Americans, particularly the elderly, ate insufficient magnesium in the 1990s and still have not increased magnesium intake adequately. As America's elderly population grows, it is likely that magnesium deficiency and PAD will continue to be a significant problem.

    Increased Magnesium Intake Decreases PAD Risk

    • Supplementing your diet with a multivitamin containing magnesium, or eating magnesium-rich foods can reduce the risk and aftereffects of PAD. A 2007 study in the European Journal of Nutrition found that oral magnesium supplementation for heart failure patients decreased blood vessel inflammation and improved the prognosis. In 2004, study in the journal Stroke, Low-Serum Magnesium Predicts Neurological Events in Patients with Advanced Atherosclerosis, concluded that magnesium deficiency caused increased stroke risk in patients with peripheral artery disease, indicating magnesium supplementation would help patients with advanced fatty layer buildup in arteries.

    Magnesium Recommendations

    • The USDA recommends eating a wide variety of foods rather than taking magnesium supplements. Recommended daily intake of magnesium for adults is 400 milligrams. The amount of magnesium you require may increase with age or change in medical condition.

    Magnesium Sources

    • Foods rich in magnesium include green vegetables such as broccoli and spinach, nuts, seeds, dried beans, whole grains, breads and cereals. Seafood, meat, milk, cheese and yogurt are also excellent magnesium sources. Cook foods for the shortest amount of time and in the smallest amount of water possible, because soaking and cooking decrease available magnesium.

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