How Can Magnesium Help Asthma?
What is asthma and how does it affect the lungs?
Many people do not connect having low minerals with asthma. Still, did you know that if you do not have enough magnesium, it can make your breathing problems worse? Asthma is a long-term breathing problem that affects the airways in the lungs. It makes it hard to breathe because the airways swell up and there is too much mucus. It is known as a breathing and airway problem, where the airways get puffy and react more to different things. When someone has asthma, the muscles around the airways get tight. The inside of the airways gets puffy, and there is more mucus than usual. This makes it much harder for air to move in and out. People might get wheezing, which is a whistling sound, feel tightness in the chest, have trouble breathing, or keep coughing. These problems can be worse at night or early in the morning.
How common is asthma and what are its triggers?
Asthma is a condition that impacts more than 300 million people around the world, based on the World Health Organization. It can start at any age, but many people get it as children. The severity and number of symptoms people have can be very different. Some people get symptoms every now and then. Other people have symptoms often, or even have attacks that risk their lives. Common triggers for asthma are allergens like pollen, mold, dust mites, and pet hair. Irritants like tobacco smoke, strong smells, and dirty air can also cause asthma symptoms. Infections such as colds, moving your body (especially when the weather is cold), and emotional stress can bring on symptoms too.
Are there different types of asthma?
There are several kinds of asthma. Some are caused by things you are allergic to, and some come from things that bother your lungs but do not cause allergies. Exercise can start an asthma attack for some people. Some people get asthma from what they are around at work. There is also a type of asthma that is hard to treat with most medicines we use.
How does magnesium deficiency impact asthma?
If you do not have enough magnesium, it can make asthma start or get worse. This is because magnesium is important for our breathing, for the way muscles work, and for how the body deals with swelling. Magnesium is a key mineral that helps control how muscles tighten, including the muscles in your airways. In asthma, magnesium acts like a natural way to open up your airways. It helps relax the muscles around your bronchial tubes, so the airways stay open and it is easier to breathe. This can stop the tightness in your chest that happens with asthma.
When a person does not get enough magnesium, the muscles in their airways can tighten up too much. This can happen more often in people who have asthma. It can make you feel short of breath, cause coughing, and make a wheezing sound when you breathe. Magnesium helps slow down swelling in the body because it affects certain cells and lowers how much things like histamine get made. For people with asthma, having swollen airways is a big issue. If someone has too little magnesium, this swelling can get worse and asthma attacks can happen more often or feel stronger.
What does research say about magnesium levels in people with asthma?
Many studies show that people with asthma usually have less magnesium in their blood or body. During bad asthma attacks, doctors may use IV magnesium to help quickly loosen the airway muscles and help with breathing. This practice shows just how important it is to have enough magnesium for your airways to work well. A lack of magnesium might not cause asthma by itself. But it can make asthma symptoms happen more often or feel worse for those who already get them or who are likely to have this condition.
Should people with asthma consider magnesium supplementation?
If you have asthma and want to know if magnesium will help, you can get a Hair Tissue Mineral Analysis (HTMA) to check your magnesium levels. Or, you can try our Upgraded Magnesium today to see if it works for you.