Palpitations or irregular heartbeats can be extremely debilitating. Going through your normal day, when suddenly your heart feels like it is pounding or racing out of your chest, can cause (and be caused by) extreme fear and anxiety along with it.
As with any condition, we need to consider root causes that are contributing to the recurring problem.
One such all-too-common variable is intracellular magnesium status. Magnesium is a very important mineral responsible for keeping the heart stable. If your doctor has not tested your intracellular magnesium status, ask them to do it! You see, approximately 99% of your magnesium levels are found intracellularly– not in the serum (1). So if you want to assess sufficiency of this mother-mineral, it is imperative to test intracellular levels. In the intracellular space is where magnesium works its magic, acting as a conjugator for enzymes and creating ATP cellular energy (2).
We have seen hundreds of patients over the years who never had intracellular level testing. Some didn’t even get blood magnesium checked.
An imbalance of minerals and electrolytes in the blood like magnesium, potassium, salt, and calcium can trigger dysregulated electrical impulses of the heart. In short, these nutrients and their imbalances can directly contribute to arrhythmias and heart palpitations.
The way this can happen is through elongated action potential of the cytoplasmic membrane of the cardiac muscle cells. Essentially, magnesium deficiency can decrease the activity of the sodium-potassium pump, leading to an increase in intracellular sodium, which thus alters this membrane potential. This change of heart cell membrane potential has been hypothesised as a mechanism for causing heart palpitations and arrhythmias (3).
Magnesium helps maintain normal potassium levels. It is involved in over 300 enzymatic reactions.
With magnesium deficiency/imbalance, it is also known that there is an increase in production of inflammatory cytokines, even after just 3 weeks of deficient intake. This can cause exaggerated immune system responses, which creates a proatherogenic environment due to changes in lipoprotein metabolism, endothelial dysfunction, thrombosis and hypertension. To summarize, magnesium deficiency can increase cardiovascular disease (3).
To best “blast” intracellular magnesium levels, we utilize our formula Magne5 which contains five different forms of magnesium to optimally support cardiovascular health and function.
If you are unsure what supplement or what dose is right for you, we offer comprehensive Micronutrient testing to assess intracellular and extracellular concentrations of vitamins, minerals, fatty acids, and antioxidants. For anyone considering supplementation, this is an essential first step!
Any tests purchased on our website include a health coaching call to review your results so we can get you started on the right protocol for you.
Get healthy. Stay well.
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