I have already answered several of your questions here. For example, on May 11, 2010, I posted about Magnesium Tests - the post is number 59784.
I didn't get tested for magnesium deficiancy - my doctor is no idiot and knew that the simple blood tests for magnesium were not accurate. And she also however had read a bit about magnesium and knew many of the symptoms. She is an MD by the way but she knows a lot more then most M.D.s - once she finished medical school she took several coarses in alternative medicine and nutrition. In fact she has been practicing for over 20 years, plus teaches a couple of classes to med studants, yet still makes time to learn more about how to treat illnesses as well as how to heal them. She has a 3 year waiting list as there are not a lot of medical doctors whom have a reputation for curing patients.
As far as the "best way to determine if a person is low on magnesium" - in my opinion ,it depends on the person to a certain extent - within limits. The common tests are not accurate so one can do what a few doctors suggest which is to try magnesium for several weeks and see how they feel and if any of their symptoms are improved - or get one of the more accurate tests done.
And as to whether a person should do it on their own are not - again that depends on both the person as well as on the situation with their doctors. If they are lucky enough to have doctor whom knows how to use his/her head for something other then putting a hat on, and is capable of learning about something other then drugs - then it can be helpful to have your doctor to consult and for another perception. Sharing responsibility makes life easier for many people. However if a person has no choice but to go it alone, then they should know what they are doing - if a person is going to take responsibility for their own health, then they need to behave responsibly. This means that they need to know the pros and cons of what they are doing - they need to find out if there are any tests and which ones are accurate if there are tests. They need to find out the symptoms and the contra-indications. And they need to find out as much as they can about how to successfully follow the treatment procedure. I believe that the person whom has the most interest in his/her own health, is the person themself. And I also believe that everyone is ultimately responsible for themselves whether they want to admit that or not - and that includes their own health. I do not believe in giving a doctor carte blanch over one's health - a doctor is someone whom is supposed to understand how the body works and what it needs to function correctly. Only if they know that can they correct any disfunctions. You can not even fix a car if you do not know how that car works and what it needs to function correctly. In my perception a doctor works with the patient to heal. I now - and I stress "now"- have no time nor respect for doctors whom are just pill-pushers. I believe in second opinions and also in informed opinions.
If a person has seizures , their magnesium levels are too low. Just as if a person has muscle cramps/spasms, then their magnesium levels are too low . Once upon a time doctors were taught how to diagnose by symptoms in medical school - and they did successfully. Now some people did not consider this fair as some people seem to be born with an inate ability to understand how the body functions and diagnose, plus there were a few whom just were not any good at diagnosing by symptoms regardless how they tried. Then tests were invented and they were easy to understand and the doctors did not have to depend on themselves to diagnose anymore. Some doctors liked this as they did not have to take responsibility for themselves and their own ability anymore. And unfortunately they stopped teaching in medical schools how to diagnose by symptoms, so the only doctors that were still able to do this were those whom had a natural ability to diagnose.
I have posted about the contra-indications of magnesium too . For magnesium I.V.s, injections and oral magnesium a person must know if they have serious kidney issues such as kidney failure and being in dialysis. This is because magnesium relaxes everything. But it is not good if magnesium builds up and relaxes anything too much, such as the heart - usually this cannot happen because the kidneys excrete all excess magnesium. But if the kidneys are seriously damaged, and have failed, then any unused magnesium does not get excreted by the kidneys. Serious kidney damage/kidney failure is a contra-indication for magnesium - even for transdermal magnesium chloride though to be honest, I really do not understand why transdermal would be a problem since magnesium cannot be absorbed by the skin if the body does not need it. However until more is known/understood about transdermal magnesium, it is prudent to just not use any form of magnesium in any amount if a person has serious kidney malfunction. There have never been any dealths from magnesium and any toxic problems have been when IVs were used. Though in theory, both oral and injections could also cause toxicity in the right circumstances.
One of the reasons I like transdermal is that it is so safe. You can literally not get too much because the skin will not absorb magnesium unless the body needs it.
As to how much to increase it - until a person has no health issues. Did you know that people whom have cancer all are magnesium deficient? And Dr Mark Sircus say in his book
"The ultimate and most dependable indicator of magnesium deficiency is your health. If your body and mind are functioning perfectly; if you have the desire, will, and energy to pursue your life dreams; if you are not saddled by aches and pains of the head , heart , or mind, then you are most likely not magnesium deficient. "
Again you can pay for an expensive test to see if a person is low or high in magnesium - there are tests and they are used in studies - it is just that they are relatively expensive and not all labs do them. But if a doctor hasn't a clue and/or it makes anybody feel better, then by all means have a test done. After all,the mind and the body work together and if the head is not happy then then the body is not either.
SERUM IONIZED MAGNESIUM
The blood ionized magnesium test correlates well with intracellular free magnesium levels. Dr Carolyn Dean favors the blood ionized magnesium test saying it is a very refined procedure backed by results on many thousands of patients and information about it has been published in prestigious journals.
INTRACELLULAR FREE MAGNESIUM
Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy is another way to treat for magnesium, but it is impractical because of the cost and the lack of routine availability.
SUBLINGUAL MAGNESIUM ASSAY
The Buccal cell smear test of "Exatest" is a safe, non-invasive test that accurately measures the minerals inside cells. This is a test used, for example, during cardiac surgery to determine cellular magnesium levels. A doctor painlessly collects a sample from under your tongue and affixes it to a slide. The slide is then sent to IntraCellular Diagnostics, Inc. for analysis
As for how much to take , there are protocols which must be followed for both oral and also transdermal. For injections there is no protocol that I have heard of - just most doctors whom use magnesium injections give then once a week or 12 weeks. With IVs there is no set protocol as far as I know - often the doctor gives 10 magnesium IVs each a week apart. As far as I know most magnesium IVs contain about 2 grams of magnesium. But my doctor has given me magnesium IVs that contained 4 grams each when I needed it. Doctors will also change how much is given according to weight as well as health status. For example a child would not be given the same amount as a 200 pound adult.
I learned how to use transdermal magnesium successfully from Dr Mark Sircus and his research assistant whom is also a practising R.N.
I also learned how to use the protocol for oral magnesium by them too. Many people also asked them about the oral protocol over the years.
The protocol for using transdermal magnesium is much the same for all adults as it is impossible to get to much magnesium using transdermal. It is slightly different for children depending on size, and for babies it is basically the same but daily amounts are different as well as how it is given - for babies sometimes using a nebulizer is best for the baby.
blessings
Shan
--- In epilepsy@yahoogroups.com, "Steve" <stephenpales@...> wrote:
>
> Hi Shan,
>
> You speak allot of magnesium. How do you believe its best to determine if a person is low on magnesium for a person with epilepsy? In all your understanding, should a person do this on there own? Or work with Drs. for this. How is it determined how low you are, and how much to increase it? How often and how much is taken eah day? Is it different for everybody or the same for everybody? Also, what are the risks of taking to much Magnesium? Could you please answer the questions I ask since you seem to be so knowledgeable on the subject. Take care, keep a smile on your face!
>
> Steve
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> --- In epilepsy@yahoogroups.com, "Shan" <surpriseshan2@> wrote:
> >
> > The anticonvulsants all deplete magnesium - depression is associated with magnesium deficiency. Get your magnesium levels up and you won't get depressed, won't have a lot of anziety and will sleep better. You will be less irritated as well as less aggressive. Magnesium is also used to cure headaches - migraines are a symptom of magnesium deficiency and can be alleviated with magnesium.
> >
> > In fact most of the symptoms of the people here on this groups are symptoms of magnesium deficiiency - which to me is not surprising as you all take drugs everyday that deplete magnesium.
> > blessings
> > Shan
> >
> > --- In epilepsy@yahoogroups.com, matthew ferguson <ferg1975@> wrote:
> > >
> > > I suffer from extreme bouts of depression and the meds usually make it worse, there seems to be no relief. My wife says she can always tell when I am going to have a bad aura during the day because of how I am feeling. I also get extremely irritable, have really bad headaches, and generally feel overstimulated all of the time.
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> > > Matt
> > >
> > > --- On Thu, 5/20/10, Mimi <mimiq_69@> wrote:
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> > > From: Mimi <mimiq_69@>
> > > Subject: [epilepsy] Seizures and depression
> > > To: epilepsy@yahoogroups.com
> > > Date: Thursday, May 20, 2010, 4:16 PM
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> > > I have noticed that my seizures come with a down side.I know meds cause it but was wondering if anyone else suffered from depression either cause by meds or just depressed.mine is a mix of both.Unfortunately the dr just added Keppra back into my meds today.So much for down to 1 med and eventually off.
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