Magnesium has hundreds of roles in the body, from energy production to nerve conduction, bone health, cardiovascular health and more. A proper level of magnesium is therefore important not only in maintaining health but also preventing disease. A brief glimpse of its benefits includes:

Bone mineral health. Magnesium helps balance your calcium supply by keeping it from being excreted. It is also required for the formation of active vitamin D3, which further aids in calcium absorption. For preventing and reversing osteoporosis, therefore, an adequate magnesium level may be as or more important than that of calcium.

Heart health. Numerous studies show that magnesium is effective for preventing complications in coronary care unit patients. In one study, researchers compared the magnesium and calcium concentrations in the hearts of individuals who died of heart disease to those who died of other causes. Researchers found significantly lower levels of magnesium in patients who died of heart disease compared to the control group. The study concluded that magnesium deficits in the arterial wall may play a role in the disease.

Another study evaluated the effects of magnesium supplementation on patients in the early stages of heart disease. At the end of the study, researchers concluded that intravenous administration of magnesium in the immediate, post-infarction period protects the heart and decreases the incidence of arrhythmia, pump dysfunction, and death.