John Libbey Eurotext




Comparison of magnesium status using X-ray dispersion analysis following magnesium oxide and magnesium citrate treatment of healthy subjects
Magnesium Research. Volume 25, Number 1, 28-39, March 2012, Original article
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Author(s) : Michael Shechter, Tomer Saad, Alon Shechter, Nira Koren-Morag, Burton B. Silver, Shlomi Matetzky
Summary : The magnesium content in food consumed in the Western world is steadily decreasing. Hypomagnesemia is associated with increased incidence of diabetes mellitus, metabolic syndrome, all-cause and coronary artery disease mortality. We investigated the impact of supplemental oral magnesium citrate versus magnesium oxide on intracellular magnesium levels ([Mg ²⁺] _i) and platelet function in healthy subjects with no apparent heart disease. In a randomized, prospective, double-blind, crossover study, 41 (20 women) healthy volunteers [mean age 53 ± 8 (range 31-75) years] received either magnesium oxide monohydrate tablets (520 mg/day of elemental magnesium) or magnesium citrate tablets (295.8 mg/day of elemental magnesium) for one month (phase 1), followed by a four-week wash-out period, and then crossover treatment for one month (phase 2). [Mg ²⁺] _i was assessed from sublingual cells through x-ray dispersion (normal values 37.9 ± 4.0 mEq/L), serum magnesium levels, platelet aggregation, and quality-of-life questionnaires were assessed before and after each phase. Oral magnesium oxide, rather than magnesium citrate, significantly increased [Mg ²⁺] _i (34.4 ± 3 versus 36.3 ± 2 mEq/L, p<\;0.001 and 34.7 ± 2 versus 35.4 ± 2 mEq/L, p\=0.097\; respectively), reduced total cholesterol (201 ± 37 versus 186 ± 27 mg/dL, p\=0.016 and 187 ± 28 versus 187 ± 25 mg/dL, p\=0.978\; respectively) and low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol (128 ± 22 versus 120 ± 25 mg/dL, p\=0.042 and 120 ± 23 versus 121 ± 22 mg/dL, p\=0.622\; respectively). Noteworthy is that both treatments significantly reduced epinephrine-induced platelet aggregation (78.9 ± 16% versus 71.7 ± 23%, p\=0.013 and 81.3 ± 15% versus 73.3 ± 23%, p\=0.036\; respectively). Thus, oral magnesium oxide treatment significantly improved [Mg ²⁺] _i, total and LDL cholesterol compared with magnesium citrate, while both treatments similarly inhibited platelet aggregation in healthy subjects with no apparent heart disease.
Keywords : magnesium, nutrition, endothelium, heart disease, hypertension, platelets

Comparison of magnesium status using X-ray dispersion analysis following magnesium oxide and magnesium citrate treatment of healthy subjects