SEROTONIN SERIES Pt 4
- Kathleen Clemens
- Jul 12, 2021
- 1 min read
Serotonin is a key hormone that deserves our full attention as it impacts our entire body! Most people know that this hormone stabilizes our mood, feelings of well-being, and happiness. But it doesn’t end there. Serotonin helps with sleeping, eating, and digestion. It also enables brain cells and other nervous system cells to communicate with each other.
While we cannot directly ingest serotonin from our foods, we can fill our plates with the key players in the serotonin making pathway. This blogpost is going to be #4 of a five part series – with each part focusing on a different player. Today’s MVP is Magnesium.
WHAT IT IS AND WHY WE CARE:
Magnesium is a mineral found in the sea, plants, the earth, humans and animals. In fact every cell in your body contains it and needs it to function!
As the second most abundant intracellular cation after potassium, it is a cofactor in more than 300 enzyme systems that manage various biochemical reactions in the body.
To name a few of its important roles, magnesium is required for muscle contraction and relaxation, ATP metabolism (which is vital to energy production), bone formation, blood pressure, heart rhythm and normal neurological function.
LOW LEVELS OF MAGNESIUM HAVE BEEN LINKED TO: Hypertension, ADHD (attention deficit disorder), Alzheimer’s disease, type-2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and migraine headaches Scientific literature shows that magnesium intake has decreased over the years especially in the Western world. Deficiency is not uncommon among the general population and Prominent cardiologists have even called magnesium deficiency a principal driver of cardiovascular disease and a public health crisis.
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