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Magnesium and major depression (2011)

ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

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Re: Magnesium and major depression (2011)

#201

Post by DoreenMichele »

zaphod4prez wrote: post #195
DoreenMichele wrote: post #184

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Sleeping in a tent for nearly six years actually did my health a world of good. It also dramatically changed my perspective on the state of housing in modern America and its relationship to myriad problems, including health issues, in ways that aren't likely to be taken seriously by most people any time soon. When I comment on such things, it typically gets downvotes and/or snarky, dismissive replies and personal att…

I'd love to hear more about this! Have you written about your experiences anywhere?

I've written extensively about my experiences being homeless, for example:

https://sandiegohomelesssurvivalguide.blogspot.com/

I also frequently write about my health, but it has become my policy to not link to any of that directly on HN. It's too much drama.

But I don't think I've done much writing about the intersection of those two topics in specific, if that's what you are asking.

Re: Magnesium and major depression (2011)

#202

Post by hiram112 »

aik wrote: post #73
less_penguiny wrote: post #38

FWIW Gwern has done some careful self-experiments on magnesium supplementation, finding it wasn't all rosy: https://www.gwern.net/nootropics/Magnesium

Magnesium truly does wonders for my sleep but every single person I’ve recommended it to has not had similar results. Like many things I’m sure there’s a significant difference depending on your biochemistry.

What were your initial sleep issues and how does MG help? Also, do you take it right before bed or is it something that just builds up in increasing effectiveness after taking it daily for weeks / months?

Re: Magnesium and major depression (2011)

#203

Post by about_help »

DoreenMichele wrote: post #177
thorwasdfasdf wrote: post #176

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I don't think the article is saying it's the sole cause but they're saying it's a factor. And of course, not everyone who gets too little mag/too much calcium will react in the same way.

From the article: inadequate dietary Mg is prevalent in America and is the most likely cause. It contains zero qualifiers suggesting it is one of many factors, a major factor among many, etc. It uses the word "the" and the singular form of "cause."

You skipped right over "most likely" and only focused on "the ... cause". To me it sounds like they are saying statistically Mg deficiency is the most widespread underlying factor. Their language is strong, but it does not come off that absolutist and the "most likely" suggests other causes.

Re: Magnesium and major depression (2011)

#204

Post by adrianmonk »

azeotropic wrote: post #130
opportune wrote: post #102

The first author has a publication called "zinc lozenges as a cure for the common cold" here: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19906491 and given that the author has his own "research institute" I'm highly skeptical of this guy's ability to do science. Seems like some kind of crackpot I mean seriously look at this website: https://m.george-eby-research.com/app/welcome/5310242/36/

He may be a crackpot, and this book is not a well-written summary of the literature, but the idea of magnesium levels influencing depression is not a crackpot idea. Magnesium is a cofactor for the enzymes that convert tryptophan into serotonin. Most of the body's serotonin is synthesized in the gut, where it helps control the muscles that move the bowels. (I assume this is why magnesium salts act as laxatives). Magne…

> I assume this is why magnesium salts act as laxatives

This is a side issue, but apparently it's a different reason.

From https://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/Magnesium-HealthProfession... : "The diarrhea and laxative effects of magnesium salts are due to the osmotic activity of unabsorbed salts in the intestine and colon and the stimulation of gastric motility."

Re: Magnesium and major depression (2011)

#205

Post by afo »

mnorton wrote: post #120

I have heard folks say one of the best ways to absorb magnesium is an empsom salt bath. Not sure if there is "science" on this, but hear it is one of the great benefits of a float tank.

Agreed. I float 2-4x/month and can confirm that I sleep way better and generally have an increase in mood. I'd highly recommend it.

Re: Magnesium and major depression (2011)

#206

Post by azeotropic »

adrianmonk wrote: post #204
azeotropic wrote: post #130

Earlier quoted context omitted.

He may be a crackpot, and this book is not a well-written summary of the literature, but the idea of magnesium levels influencing depression is not a crackpot idea. Magnesium is a cofactor for the enzymes that convert tryptophan into serotonin. Most of the body's serotonin is synthesized in the gut, where it helps control the muscles that move the bowels. (I assume this is why magnesium salts act as laxatives). Magne…

> I assume this is why magnesium salts act as laxatives This is a side issue, but apparently it's a different reason. From https://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/Magnesium-HealthProfession... : "The diarrhea and laxative effects of magnesium salts are due to the osmotic activity of unabsorbed salts in the intestine and colon and the stimulation of gastric motility."

Sounds like it's only part of the reason, if I'm correctly parsing "... and the stimulation of gastric motility" as a second mechanism of action.

Re: Magnesium and major depression (2011)

#207

Post by ipython »

dTal wrote: post #194
DoreenMichele wrote: post #184

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Sleeping in a tent for nearly six years actually did my health a world of good. It also dramatically changed my perspective on the state of housing in modern America and its relationship to myriad problems, including health issues, in ways that aren't likely to be taken seriously by most people any time soon. When I comment on such things, it typically gets downvotes and/or snarky, dismissive replies and personal att…

I'd always been dimly aware that I always woke up feeling more refreshed in a tent, but it wasn't until fairly recently that I noticed I got the same effect if I slept with the window open. Now I keep my bedroom window open at all times. In general, I think society is extremely blase about possible health hazards - if it doesn't kill you instantly, people basically don't wanna know. Alcohol is huge. Smoking is even n…

Sorry that I'm focusing on one small part of your comment, but I'm genuinely curious - do you find you have the same effect if, say, you force your whole house fan to run at least five or ten minutes out of every hour?

I find that fresh air helps too, but during the winter I can't convince myself to "waste" money heating the house while at the same time leaving a window wide open letting the cold back in...

BTW I don't think smoking is considered 'fine' by any stretch - at least where I live in the US. All restaurants/bars are non-smoking, and the only place my kids have encountered smokers has been when we travel in Europe.

Re: Magnesium and major depression (2011)

#208

Post by arkades »

djakjxnanjak wrote: post #192
arkades wrote: post #145

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Tums after every meal is actually a really good way of getting electrolyte imbalances, to the point of developing kidney stones from the amount that the kidney has to excrete to try and keep things on an even keel. If you need tums after every meal, you should be talking to your doc about a PPI. edit: Now I think on it, actually, depending on (variables), you might need a specialist visit more than a PCP visit for so…

PPIs cause long-term damage, it’s better to try an H2 blocker first.

And a source for that?

There have been some very weak recent studies on PPIs and long-term dementia risk that look very flimsy. Other than that, I’m unaware of “long term damage.”

Re: Magnesium and major depression (2011)

#210

Post by TeMPOraL »

dTal wrote: post #194
DoreenMichele wrote: post #184

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Sleeping in a tent for nearly six years actually did my health a world of good. It also dramatically changed my perspective on the state of housing in modern America and its relationship to myriad problems, including health issues, in ways that aren't likely to be taken seriously by most people any time soon. When I comment on such things, it typically gets downvotes and/or snarky, dismissive replies and personal att…

I'd always been dimly aware that I always woke up feeling more refreshed in a tent, but it wasn't until fairly recently that I noticed I got the same effect if I slept with the window open. Now I keep my bedroom window open at all times. In general, I think society is extremely blase about possible health hazards - if it doesn't kill you instantly, people basically don't wanna know. Alcohol is huge. Smoking is even n…

> In general, I think society is extremely blase about possible health hazards - if it doesn't kill you instantly, people basically don't wanna know.

A flip side of this is that if you stopped and considered what is reported to be killing you slowly, you'd go crazy (and arguably a lot of people did, to some extent). Consider e.g. nutritional "advice" in popular press.

Having my attention constantly called to garbage information on what does cause cancer this week by random people, I developed a following rule of thumb: if the actual negative health effect is big enough to even worth spending time thinking about, the product is either already banned by the government or has huge warning labels on it. Otherwise, it's fine in moderate quantities.

EDIT:

> "is there a powerful incentive structure in place to prevent this from invisibly but seriously harming me"? Usually, the answer is "no"

There's another question worth considering: "is there a powerful incentive structure in place to blow up statistical noise out of proportion, in order to create fear around common products?", and the answer is clearly yes - this is one of the ways news portals, lifestyle magazines and small blogs drive their traffic.

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