Calcium and Magnesium Reduce Risk of Metabolic Syndrome.

Article by Arnie Gitomer

Metabolic syndrome is a cluster of traits including abdominal obesity, and high blood pressure and cholesterol, similar to those in pre-diabetes.

Earlier studies had found a link individually between calcium or magnesium and metabolic syndrome, but this is the first to measure these minerals and chances for developing metabolic syndrome.

In this study, 9,148 men and women reported their diets to doctors, who followed up for 10 years. Women who reached the recommended dietary allowance (RDA) for calcium and magnesium were 41 percent less likely to have developed metabolic syndrome compared to women who got less of these two nutrients. Men who got the most calcium and magnesium were 26 percent less likely to develop metabolic syndrome compared to those who got the least, with the best dosage being higher than the RDA: at least 386 mg of magnesium and 1,224 mg of calcium per day.

(Reference: British Journal of Nutrition; 2015, Vol. 114, No. 6, 924-35)