Wondering if I'm processing mangesium

I'm at another intersection on my afib path. Slowly increasing magnesium glycinate intake over the last few weeks to presently taking 1000mg/day (manufactured by KAL), plus rubbing magnesium gel on my skin 2-3 times daily, approximately 1/3t. each time, not sure how much mag. that contributes. Haven't reached bowel tolerance; in fact, it seems I am more constipated.
Could it be I am not processing the magnesium? Should I continue to up my daily dose? What kind of testing is available to check magnesium levels? And for that matter, are there tests to check for all the electrolytes? I am also wondering about the essential nutrient/organ function/metabolic testing to get performed to help decide what supplements may do the most good for my particular body condition.
The past four weeks have been a roller-coaster; one week with minimal ectopics and afib followed by the next with almost daily. The afib episodes last from a few seconds to 3-5 hours then convert; the ectopics seem to start upon arising and may last most of the morning, then stop for a while, only to take up again later in the afternoon. Also experiencing episodes where afib and nsr will alternate back and forth for a few hours, sometimes going into continuous afib and other times to nsr finally.
I am just wondering what my next steps to be and how to determine them. It seems some testing may be in order.
Thanks, Marty

Marty,

There is about a 90% chance that you are deficient in magnesium [www.afibbers.com] and if your deficiency is serious enough oral supplementation is unlikely to improve your status. I would suggest you consider having weekly magnesium injections/infusions for a couple of months or so to bring your base level up and then carry on with supplementation. This of course assumes that your kidney function is normal. You can arrange for a test for intracellular magnesium level [www.exatest.com], but in most cases that would probably be a waste of money as the likelyhood of a lone afibber being deficient is so high. You can find a doctor that will give you the injections at [www.acam.org].

Hans

Thanks Hans.
I went to the website; there are two doctors in Asheville on that site (www.acam.org) and I will contact them this week and try to get in asap. Meanwhile, my question to you, should I stop all other electrolyte supplementation until mag. levels are up?
Marty

Marty,

I wonder at your comment that you are more constipated, now than before you started supplementing.

What else are you taking? 1000 mg of mg is no small feat to do without loose stools..

Usually, it is just the opposite of what you are experiencing, until your intracellular levels are good. It's a funny thing in that the more your cells are ok, the more your body will hold onto, and the less diarrhea you may have, not constipation.

lisa
__________________________

So much of medicine is looking solely down the wrong end of the gun barrel, and that is really a pity for all of us---Shannon

Marty,

I take 2.6 grams of magnesium/day and am near but not above bowel tolerance. Bowel tolerance is highly individual.

George

Marty, forgive me if you have explained this and i missed it, but are you maybe taking pain relievers for some physical problem? I have a lot of pain from my arthritic old knees [and from a lifetime of overweight, i must say] and for a while i was taking a lot of codiene, and that stuff is like concrete to the bowel. Have lost maybe 30 lbs and the poor abused knees are slowly improving, but another lot of weight that size needs to go before anything like normalcy can set in. Only taking occasional tramadol now, but even that is a very, very constipating drug to take.

I use magnesium glycinate tablets to overcome that problem. Enough of that will get things moving again, but it takes a large amount. Could this effect be contributing to your troubles? All pharmaceutical drugs are famous for causing magnesium wasting, just ask Jackie, no matter what they are composed of. Doctors mostly do not take the drugs they prescribe, so if the pharmaceutical company that makes the drug "somehow omitted" a constipating tendency in the literature they were sent they do not even know about it.

PeggyM

PS:codeine, not what i typed.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/25/2013 07:28AM by PeggyM.

Thanks all for your input. Perhaps I'll try other sources of magnesium glycinate (dissolved powder) and the waller water. I'm leaning toward the testing (Exatest), may consult with another MD about supplementation as suggested by Hans.

PeggyM, I'm not taking any pain medication, only 81mg aspirin/day. Here recently have been taking 1000 mg Omega3, 5-600 mg potassium, 1000mg taurine, 2000mg Vit. D3, 100mg COQ10, 800mg lysine; have also weaned off atenelol over the last 3 weeks and cut flecianide to 100mg/day. Perhaps my body is adjusting to the absence of beta-blocker it's been used to for +/- 7 years?

GeorgeN, Wow, I'm not even close to what you are taking. Thanks for letting me know your experience; I won't give up now.

lisa, I don't follow what you mean...more is less, less is more?

Marty

Marty, I wasn't very clear on that. What I meant was: most people have looser stools after they start taking Magnesium, not constipation, but the higher your IC mag is, the more mag you can take without diarrhea.

Sorry for the confusion, hopefully this time I said it correctly and clearly.

lisa
__________________________

So much of medicine is looking solely down the wrong end of the gun barrel, and that is really a pity for all of us---Shannon

Lisa,

I understand it differently. If your cells are "full" of mag then your body won't take much in from your gut. The mag that stays in your gut is very hydrophyllic (holds onto water). This hydration is what makes your stools loose. If your cells need mag, they will take a lot out of your bowels and constipation can be a result. Obviously sources of fiber will also come into play in the constipation equation.

Marty,

There is Dr. Mansmann's experience (an MD diabetic magnesium researcher). He was able to overcome his own diabetic neuropathy by consuming 20 grams/mag/day for a year, while his saturation level was 3g/day. I previously posted more details on his story:

<[www.afibbers.org];

George

"The mag that stays in your gut is very hydrophyllic (holds onto water). This hydration is what makes your stools loose. " The way i have thought about this [it is a very long time since i have thought about it, actually] is that any magnesium that is not absorbed into the bloodstream just lies in the gut attracting liquid to itself by hygroscopic action. That is the same action that, in the summer when the air is very humid, turns grains of salt left on a plate into little drops of salt water. The gut is a very humid environment, of course. The more magnesium that is in there, the faster the gut fills up with liquid drawn from the intracellular fluid, since that is the fluid that is readily available to it. Once the gut is full of liquid, we all know what happens next. It leaves by the lower exit, taking with it any minerals that happen to be dissolved in it at that time, like some of our already-scarce potassium for instance.

I have occasionally gotten an afib episode from catching a case of the intestinal version. of the local creeping crud. Spewing from both ends is miserable enough without afib too. In recent years i have avoided this dismal effect by being very careful to replenish potassium by extra supplementation whenever i had some diarrhea.

PeggyM

Thought we were onto a brand new supplement when first reading the subject line... mangesium. A combo of Mg and manganese?

Maybe Hans oughta check out this possibility. ;>)

/L

My own typos are so many and so embarrassing, i try not to criticize others' typos. Glass house, can't throw stones. We are none of us young enough never to make mistakes.

PeggyM

Peg -- Just to clarify... no critique was intended. Saw a little humor and thought I'd share a viewpoint.

Think we really need to look for the fun in life a bit more than we do... for whatever amount of time we each may have left.

My apologies if you found this offensive.

/L

No offense intended and none taken. I am oversensitive.

PeggyM