Nutrition Information

Magnesium Deficiency Causes Personality Change and WLS Patients are at Risk


Have you ever felt like you were completely losing your mind? Like the world was swallowing you up and little things were out of your control and unmanageable? Like you were confused, tired, out of sorts and simply wanted to collapse? Has everyday noise become intolerably loud in your head?

That's how I was feeling a few months ago. I was confident I'd lost my mind and suffered a serious change of personality (for the worse, I may add).

My husband noticed my personality change too. He's a good and wise man and quietly did some research. This is what we learned and how we set about correcting my "problem."

As we know the gastric-bypass patient is at risk for vitamin and mineral deficiency. I religiously take my supplements. However, I was not taking the RDI of Magnesium which is 400 milligrams/day. Magnesium rich foods are raw rice bran, raw wheat germ, yellow cornmeal, corn, soybeans, soy milk, tofu, raw seeds and nuts, leafy greens, yellow vegetables and fruits, whole cereal grains, milk products & seafood. Meat and poultry are not particularly good sources of magnesium. Clearly, a weight loss surgery patient will not meet their magnesium requirements through diet.

From Dr. Bernard Jensen's Guide to Body Chemistry & Nutrition" I quote:

"I want to point out here that the classical deficiency symptoms for magnesium include neuromuscular signs, such as tremors, weakness, muscle spasms and irregular heartbeat; gastrointestinal signs such as nausea and vomiting; and personality changes that display confusion, apprehensiveness and depression. In the "old days" people with magnesium deficiency were often (mistakenly) taken to mental institutions because they acted so radically different that they literally seemed to be mentally ill."

In other reading we learned magnesium deficiency leads to a hyper-sensitivity to sound:

"It is well established that nutritional effects may result in hypersensitive hearing. Many individuals who are deficient in magnesium suffer from sound sensitivity, and they often experience an improvement after receiving magnesium supplements. A suggested 20 milligrams per each 10 pounds of body weight per day, is an appropriate amount of magnesium. Improvement would occur within a few days if the cause of the sensitivity is a magnesium deficiency." This statement appeared in The Sound Connection, 1998, Vol. 5, No. 3.

I started immediately taking a magnesium supplement and within a few weeks I felt like a new woman back to my old self again. The hyper-sensitivity to sound diminished and life did not seem so overwhelming. Case in point - exactly two weeks after beginning the magnesium supplement my stepsons and their children arrived unexpectedly at our home for dinner. To make matters worse, we had the kitchen disassembled for a minor remodel project. I happily adapted and cooked dinner for 7 without having a breakdown. That's when I knew the magnesium was working.

Patients should talk with their bariatric center if they experience these conditions or concerns. Annual blood tests will indicate if a patient is deficient in magnesium and other essential vitamins and minerals.

© 2005 Kaye Bailey - All Rights Reserved

Kaye Bailey is a weight loss surgery success story having maintained her health and goal weight for 5+ years. An award winning journalist, she is the author and webmaster of http://www.livingafterwls.com and http://www.livingafterwls.blogspot.com

Fresh & insightful content is added daily, check in often.

To subscribe to the LivingAfterWLS monthly newsletter "You Have Arrived" click on http://www.livingafterwls.com and enter your details in the subscription box.


MORE RESOURCES:

Natural Nutrition Inc reports net income for year-to-date
Trading Markets (press release), CA - 2 hours ago
The company, through its subsidiaries, manufactures health food and nutrition products. It offers sports, nutritional and natural dietary supplement ...
Zacks Analyst Blog Highlights: Cliffs Natural Resources Inc ... Trading Markets (press release)
all 11 news articles


The Grand, a "Little Slice of Europe in Florida," Adds Double ...
MarketWatch - 14 hours ago
She is the only medical doctor in the bay area who is double board certified in internal medicine and nutrition. Dr. Hermann is also the only medical doctor ...


Symmetry Continues Partnership with Plan USA
MarketWatch - 14 hours ago
The school-based nutrition and health project also includes helping to transport livestock to the schools for the upcoming school year; purchasing cows, ...


Forthcoming Dietary Study Highlights Important Role of Ready-to ...
MarketWatch - 16 hours ago
Complete results of the study, led by The General Mills Bell Institute of Health and Nutrition in Minneapolis, will be published in the November 21 issue of ...


Texting Food Diaries Helps Kids Stick With Diets
Washington Post, United States - 17 hours ago
The research was published in the November/December issue of the Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior. Previous studies have shown that dieters who ...
School ban on sugary drinks shows little effect Reuters
all 12 news articles


PC Brands Introduces Great Tasting Shelf-Stable Nutrition Bar With ...
MarketWatch - Nov 19, 2008
"We are excited to be able to offer a probiotic that can be used in entirely new categories of food, including shelf-stable nutrition bars. ...


Mom's chili fails nutrition test
Brick Township Bulletin,  United States - 11 hours ago
"Yeah, I took it to my nutrition lab, and did you know that the daily recommendation of sodium is 1500 to 2300 milligrams, and your chili had 3205 ...


The Patriot-News - PennLive.com

Farming groups help kids learn about nutrition
The Patriot-News - PennLive.com, PA - 13 hours ago
by ELIZABETH GIBSON, The Patriot-News Dan Gleiter, The Patriot-NewsAgriculture groups join together to teach second-grade classes at Bellaire Elementary ...


Nutrition seminar promotes milk
Jakarta Post, Indonesia - 8 hours ago
JAKARTA: Around 200 mothers, members of the Family Welfare Movement from all over Jakarta, attended an educational seminar on nutrition held in Jakarta on ...


Cal's Walker healthy, ready for No. 3 Rutgers
International Herald Tribune, France - 16 hours ago
Thanks to daily iron pills and better nutrition — she is learning to eat leafy greens like spinach — she's that much stronger ahead of the No. ...

Nutrition - Google News

home | site map
© 2006