Magnesium threonate is a unique form of magnesium. This newsletter tells you why it’s different and why you should take it.
There are many forms of magnesium. Most are not well absorbed into the brain due to the blood-brain barrier (BBB).
Magnesium threonate is the exception. It quickly passes through the blood-brain barrier, making magnesium readily available to the brain. Threonate came on the market relatively recently and is still under patent protection. This makes magnesium theonate rather expensive compared to other forms.
You can find out more about its history and development here. The main message, however, is that your brain can quickly get the magnesium it needs by taking the oral form of threonate. I do take this supplement myself.
Magnesium Threonate delivers what your brain needs:
Magnesium is magnesium, and threonate gets the magnesium where it’s needed.
So, what does an adequate supply of magnesium do for your brain?
- It reduces neuroinflammation.
- Increases synaptic density and plasticity.
- It helps stave off dementia.
- Reduces “brain age” by up to nine years.
- Improves cognitive performance.
- Improves short-term memory.
Let’s look at these benefits one by one:
Reduces neuroinflammation:
Neuroinflammation is a destructive form of inflammation that can and will destroy brain tissues and wreak havoc on nerve transmission and synaptic information handoffs.
Actually, neuroinflammation is similar to peripheral inflammation, with the emergence of macrophages and inflammatory mediators, immune cells, and consequential local tissue injury. Indeed, neuroinflammation is the hallmark of neurodegenerative disorders.
“Neuroinflammation is the major pathophysiological process underlying several neurodegenerative conditions.” Many of these maladies are correlated with low magnesium levels.
It follows that correction of Mg deficiency is helpful in the presence of neuroinflammation.
Increases synaptic density and plasticity:
Magnesium threonate has been shown to promote the growth of nerve cells and synapses. This improves synaptic density and plasticity (by introducing new synaptic growth).
Brain shrinkage is partially due to the global loss of synapses and supporting tissues (among others, loss of glial cells and myelination are also factors). Other supplements besides magnesium also play a positive role when staving off dementia.
Restoring denser levels of synapses improves memory, short-term memory, learning, and cognition in general.
Staving off dementia.
In a clinical study to slow or stave off dementia (Alzheimer’s in this case), researchers gave patients with mild Alzheimer’s dementia high doses of magnesium threonate. The outcome was that magnesium threonate showed improvements in cognition and executive function (problem-solution ability).
With qualifications, this can be considered a reversal of dementia.
Can magnesium threonate delay the onset of dementia? Well, this is difficult to say, but higher blood magnesium levels are associated with lower rates of dementia. While this is a correlation and does not indicate a cause, it is worth noting that getting magnesium in the brain is a challenge.
Magnesium threonate resolves this challenge with no apparent downside. This makes for a simple and obvious choice for those who use supplements.
Reduces “brain age” by up to nine years.
What if you could open the doors to your brain and turn its aging clock back nine years by feeding it magnesium?
Well, this has been done according to this study.
Now, this study is not an easy read, but it’s worth it if you’re so inclined.
Let’s keep the list going…
Improves cognitive performance:
See the study linked in the above section. Cognitive function, thinking speed, and performance of simple timed tasks and higher-level executive functions were improved after significant dosing with magnesium threonate.
Improves short-term memory.
Loss of short-term memory is a hallmark of Alzheimer’s disease. Magnesium threonate clearly improves short-term memory (in rats). It might also help treat short-term memory loss in early-stage Alzheimer’s patients. This could also be true in healthy individuals as well.
My personal story:
For several years, I have started my mornings with a brain-exercising game called Lumosity. Many of you might do the same. This takes about fifteen minutes and measures five areas (categories) of mental skills.
(This is not an IQ test. It is a workout for your brain.)
Eventually, your Lumosity training performance levels off, and you establish an overall score. The idea is then to maintain this score and inch it up slowly as your skills improve. I play this game every day.
A couple of years ago, I started taking magnesium threonate, and my overall score went up about twenty percent in a month’s time. The category that increased the most was memory. Lumosity keeps your category and overall scores from day one. I have several years of records, and it’s easy to see the point when I started taking magnesium threonate.
This is purely anecdotal; it could have been a placebo effect, but it convinced me enough to stay with it.
So here’s what I take:
I take one capsule a day of Life Extension’s product Neuro-Mag. Also, I take 300 milligrams of extended-release magnesium from Life Extension. I recommend spacing out magnesium because your body will quickly eliminate excessive blood levels of magnesium if you dump a whole bunch in all at once.
Now let me say that my doing something is not a sufficient reason for you to do it. You can check with your health care provider if you want, study magnesium threonate, and decide if taking it is the best choice for you.
Finally, here is an easy-to-read article about magnesium threonate.
OMY1
By the way, I have no financial relationships with Lunosity or Lifextension, and I don’t make any money if you buy their products or use their services.
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