I would really appreciate any thoughts you might have on this matter. I am reading the Protein Power Lifeplan and they recommend that we take some magnesium supplements if we take only one supplement. They say to take it before going to bed. I checked with my Fitday what amount of magnesium I usually eat and it came up at 115% RDI. So I am eating enough according to RDI. But is it really enough? From the tone of the book, I got the impression that they think that the RDI are too low but I cannot find how much…

If I start taking magnesium supplements, should I take potassium also? Should I buy tablets with both magnesium and potassium or should I take it at different times in the day?

I know you are not doctors, I am just a bit confused and would appreciate you two cents on this.

I don't take mag, just pot

I am 5'8", 140#, medimum frame. I have been taking two 200mg magnesium citrate tablets morning and night for some four years now. It is definately not so much for me that I have gone from being a dog to being a sheep (see page 10) in my bowel function. I did goof once and grabbed a bottle of magnesium oxide that was twice the dose per capsule as that of the citrate tablets. That DID loosen me up, though just a little. So I would suggest the you increase your dose, if you do, slowly so you can judge when you get to the TOO much point.

Here is something I posted on another board that summarizes the PPLP Supplement recomendations. I take all these plus some others like glucosamine, for my joints to help repair the abuse they recieved from all the junk I ate the first 60 years of my life. The science that the Drs. Eades used in writing their book, some 400 journal articles, is what "sold" me on PPLP. And so I think that their supplement recommendations are very sound and should be followed.

Hope that helps to answer your question.

Regards,
Larry

FYI: The RDI for magnesium is 320mg for a woman, and 420mg for a man.

I don't remember what amount the Eades recommend (maybe the above link gives that info), but hopefully this information will help you figure out how much you are currently getting.

Thanks, medalian1, Larry and treefrog for taking the time to answer my post, it is greatly appreciated.

My magnesium is already in the 300-400 mg daily, so I don’t need a supplement for that.

Fitday is giving weird readings about potassium. Maybe because I didn’t enter it in my custom foods, I don’t know (strange, I didn’t enter magnesium either in my custom food…). But especially with this hot weather, I think I will try to take a potassium supplement. You would not believe how much water I drink these days!

Does anyone know how much water is too much?

According to the Eades, magnesium should always be supplemented. Remember that the RDA of any vitamin or mineral is the minimum needed to prevent deficiencies, not the optimal for good health.

PPLP Chapter 9 -- the Magnesium Miracle

P. 205 "... the magnesium intake of early man appears to have been as much as 800 to 1500 mg per day."

P. 214 "...we have a hard time absorbing magnesium from food; kids absorb only about 25-35 percent of the dietary magnesium they take in. And as we age, our ability to absorb magnesium falls to under 15 percent. So even if we're eating what ought to be enough... the magnesium may not make it in through tthe intestinal tract very well."

P. 223 "We recommend that our patient take at least 300 to 400 mg of extra actual magnesium (usually the citrate, malate, or aspartate chelate) each evening if they're n apparent good health.... In those people who have already developed any of the problems related to insulin resistance, we bump the daily dose up to 400 to 600 mg...."

I too, get plenty from food but if the absorbtion rate is as low as the Eades state, then I'm in reality not getting even the minimum RDA. Since upping my intake to 600 by supplements (in two doses), I've seen several heath benefits including greatly reduced tacchycardia spells, better sleep patterns,
and lower fasting blood sugars in the morning.