Usually when you hear about public water supply and disease, you assume the worst, right?

Well, in Taiwan, while diabetes has been sweeping the country with a vengeance as people shift to a more sedentary lifestyle and a more western diet - several communities have been almost entirely unaffected. The reason? Their water.

Researcher Chun-Yuh Yang from the Institute of Public Health at Kaohsiung Medical University in Taiwan and his colleagues documented that communities with higher levels of magnesium in their drinking water experienced far lower rates of diabetes.¹

Yang's discovery is part of a growing body of research documenting the link between magnesium deficiency and diabetes. In fact, the relationship is so convincing that the American Diabetes Association (ADA) has recommended that patients with diabetes and certain specific conditions should be tested for magnesium deficiency.² Why?

Diabetes and Low Magnesium: An Undeniable Connection

Take a look at the three largest studies on the incidence of diabetes: The Harvard Nurses' Health Study which involved 85,000 women; the Health Professionals Follow-Up Study which involved 43,000 men; and the Iowa Women's Health Study which involved 40,000 women.

These three studies – covering a total of 168,000 people – found that those who consumed the highest amounts of magnesium (through food and/or dietary supplementation) had the lowest risk for diabetes.³

In another study, nearly half of people with diabetes also had low blood serum magnesium levels – 47.7%. And since blood serum levels are actually poor indicators of the overall magnesium levels in the body, this number most likely under-represents how widespread magnesium deficiency is in people with diabetes. (Most magnesium is in your cells, not your blood; so testing red blood cell levels is crucial for getting an accurate result.)

Additionally, magnesium plays a key role in combating obesity, one of the most reliable predictors for developing diabetes. One study of obese children found that 55% of obese children did not get enough magnesium in their diets compared to 27% of non-obese children.

And research on mice has shown that magnesium is an important factor – in combination with B vitamins – in turning off genes that may contribute to obesity.⁴

These and numerous other studies on animals and humans have shown without a doubt that there is a connection between hypomagnesium (low magnesium) and diabetes – as well as its precursor, metabolic syndrome, or syndrome X.

Magnesium and Insulin Resistance

Type 2 diabetes – the most common form – develops when your cells become resistant to insulin, the hormone that shepherds glucose (sugar) from the blood into the cells. Without glucose, the cells cannot make energy. And, barred from the cells, that extra glucose in the blood wreaks havoc on the rest of your body.

When it comes to demonstrating the connection between diabetes and magnesium, Dr. Jerry Nadler, MD, Director of the Strelitz Diabetes Center at Eastern Virginia Medical School, has led the charge. He explains, "Low magnesium can impair the ability of insulin to cause glucose uptake in cells."⁵

You see, your cells don't just need insulin to open the door and let glucose in. They need magnesium. Without enough magnesium, it doesn't matter how much insulin is knocking on the door, the cell won't open.⁶

Further research also reveals that low magnesium may inhibit insulin secretion in the pancreas.⁷ So not only is magnesium deficiency causing your body to resist what insulin you have, but also, the lack of magnesium may be limiting your body's production of insulin to begin with.

A Vicious Cycle

But that's just the beginning...

As researchers have delved deeper, they've found evidence that not only can low magnesium levels cause diabetes, but - even worse - diabetes itself causes magnesium levels in the body to decrease.

"Insulin resistance can in turn further lead to reduced magnesium (inside the cell where the magnesium acts)," continues Dr. Nadler.

And Dr. Nadler points out that diabetes can rob people of magnesium in other ways as well. In addition to possible poor absorption in the digestive tract⁸, Nadler explains, "people with out-of-control diabetes can spill more magnesium in the urine and thus lose magnesium."

Why? Insulin seems to play a role in helping the kidneys reabsorb magnesium before it gets washed out with urine.⁹ If your body is not responding to insulin, you may not be retaining the magnesium you need.

It becomes a vicious cycle – the disease progressing further as it depletes your body of the very mineral that can actually slow the disease down.

Diabetic Complications And Magnesium

Now it's bad enough that magnesium deficiency seems to play a key role in diabetes. But as we've discussed in earlier articles, low magnesium has also been implicated in other chronic health problems that are associated with diabetes – conditions such as hypertension and cardiovascular disease, as well as nerve and eye damage.

As Dr. Nadler summarized in an article he published for cardiologists in 2000, "Based on current knowledge, clinicians have good reason to believe that magnesium repletion may play a role in delaying type 2 diabetes on-set and potentially in warding off its devastating complications – cardiovascular disease, retinopathy and nephropathy."¹⁰

Bringing It Into Practice: You May Have To Be The Educator

Because of this conclusion, Dr. Nadler makes magnesium a key part of his clinical practice. "I speak with every patient about their diets and try to help them eat a healthy diet that includes sufficient magnesium. If magnesium levels are low or they can't eat those foods, I recommend adding a supplement."

However, he cautions people with kidney problems to work closely with their health care provider in supplementing with magnesium. If the kidneys are not functioning properly, blood magnesium can rise to toxic levels.

Make Magnesium Part of Your Diabetes Care Plan

So if you're struggling with diabetes, insulin-resistance or simply determined to steer clear of both of these, follow the recommendations Dr. Nadler makes for his own patients. Eat magnesium rich foods like nuts and leafy greens. However – since it can be hard to get enough magnesium in your diet – consider supplementation as well.

Given its role in diabetes, insuring you get enough magnesium just makes sense.

But take note – you may also have to educate your doctor about this. Despite the improvements that Dr. Nadler has seen in making this simple addition to his patient's regimen, he notes that most endocrinologists or general practitioners are not aware of the connection.

Be prepared for this lack of awareness. Grab a copy of this article – or Dr. Carolyn Dean’s book, The Magnesium Miracle – and take it with you to your next doctor's appointment. Not only will you change your own health with this new knowledge, you may end up opening the door for many more people struggling to find a safe and simple solution.

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Cited Sources

1. Yang CY et al. Magnesium in drinking water and the risk of death from diabetes mellitus. Magnes Res. 1999;12:131-137.
2. Nadler J. Diabetes and Magnesium: The Emerging Role of Oral Magnesium Supplementation. Clinical, Research, and Laboratory News for Cardiologists. Third Quarter 2000.
3. Dean C. The Magnesium Miracle. Ballantine, New York. 2007, p. 125
4. Dean, 119, 127
5. Nadler, J. Personal interview. 7/27/09
6. Dean, p. 120.
7. Phuong-Chi et al.
8. Phuong-Chi et al.
9. Phuong-Chi et al.
10. Nadler, J. Personal interview. 7/27/09

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Article ID: 580