MAGNESIUM

 

What Is Magnesium?

Magnesium is a necessary and essential mineral for the proper functioning of cells in the body. It is the fourth most abundant mineral in the body, and the second most abundant in the cells of the body. This mineral is important for the proper functioning of the various systems in the body such as the cardiovascular system, immune system, nervous system, bones and muscles.

About -50% of the magnesium in the body is found in the bone. Excess is present in the cells of body tissues and organs.

Magnesium helps maintain the proper functioning of muscles and nerves, maintain a stable heart rate, support the proper functioning of the immune system and build bones. It also helps in controlling blood sugar levels and maintaining a healthy blood pressure.

 

Magnesium deficiency in the body is associated with disturbances in the heart rate, which predicts death, as a result of blockage of the heart muscle.

 

How Much Magnesium Is Necessary For The Human Body?

Recommendations for magnesium per day are based on age and gender

What Are The Main Sources Of Magnesium In Food?

The main sources of magnesium from food are vegetables, especially green leafy vegetables, legumes, nuts, seeds, whole grains and their products (such as whole wheat bread).

These foods are part of a healthy, varied and balanced diet.

 

Magnesium content in a number of foods, for example

 

Numerous reports in Western countries indicate a decrease in magnesium consumption due to changing dietary habits and switching to processed foods.

As a result, the magnesium content in the body decreases, especially in adults and the elderly, who have, in addition to a decrease in the consumption of foods rich in magnesium, a decrease in the ability to absorb magnesium in the intestine, taking medications that lead to a decrease in body stores (such as a diuretic). digoxin, certain antibiotic medicines, etc.). Associated diseases, such as diabetes, also lead to a decrease in the concentration of magnesium in the body, following an increase in its excretion in the urine.

In the Israeli population, it is expected that there will be a further decrease due to exposure to heat (which causes magnesium loss in sweat) and prolonged stressful situations (which cause loss of magnesium in the urine due to an increase in the level of adrenaline).

 

Magnesium In Drinking Water

Tap water in Israel and in the world contains magnesium in different concentrations. The magnesium content in tap water varies from place to place and depending on the water supply.

"Asir" water (rich in minerals) contains more magnesium compared to "easy" water (low in minerals).

Tap water is an important source of magnesium. In places where the water is hard, for example Israel, drinking water constitutes about -20% of the sources of magnesium in the human body, so a lack of magnesium in drinking water for a long time may lead to a decrease in the level of magnesium in the body, and accordingly, an increase in the incidence of disease and death.

The magnesium content in water is doubly important, as a large part of the nutrition includes water in an indirect way (drinking water by animals that are a source of food, preparing food and washing it).

 

Research On The Topic Regarding The Importance Of Magnesium In Water

Research indicates that drinking water rich in minerals leads to an improvement in body fat balance and a significant reduction in blood pressure.

It should be noted that the extent of magnesium concentrations in natural water is very large, and therefore it is difficult to reach a conclusion about the desired concentration of magnesium in drinking water, since in certain studies clear differences in the level of risk can be observed even in the presence of a number of single milligrams of magnesium in a liter of water. .

On the basis of the existing scientific knowledge from many researches on the effect of magnesium on health, it can be concluded that drinking water low or deficient in magnesium may lead to health risks, especially to an increase in the rates of morbidity and mortality from cardiovascular diseases.

 

The Situation In Israel

The State of Israel is the world leader in desalination. It is expected that the volume of water produced from desalination plants will reach in the year 2020 about -50% of the water supplied for consumption, and later on to about -60-70% of the consumption.

 

Such a trend will lead to a significant reduction in the concentration of magnesium in drinking water, since the existing desalination plants in Israel operate in such a way that zero concentrations of minerals (reverse osmosis) remain in the water, compared to the average concentration of magnesium in natural water sources in Israel, which today stands at 25-30 mg per liter (milligrams per liter).

As mentioned above, low mineral water may have serious health effects, since water is an important source of minerals.

Therefore, according to the definition of People’s Health Regulations (Health Quality of Drinking Water and Drinking Stations) for the year-2013, in the Ministry of Health (in cooperation with the Water Authority, Ministry of Agriculture and Ministry of Finance), a pilot was promoted to study the importance, costs, and feasibility of different technologies for adding magnesium to desalinated water. .

It is important to check the amount of magnesium that reaches homes in Israel.

The water system in Israel is a flexible supply system where water flows from hundreds of different sources (among them desalination plants), which changes within the system on an annual, seasonal, daily and even continuous basis according to needs. Due to the frequent changes in the application within the system, it is not possible to obtain reliable information about the constant concentration of minerals in the water in the water supply system, because it is not constant and changes all the time.

The sampling moments in the system provide only reliable information regarding the sampling moment itself, not for the next hours, the next season or the next year and certainly do not reflect the situation retroactively.

Therefore, given the complexity of the water distribution system in Israel on the one hand, and the need to calculate the amount of magnesium that reaches homes in Israel on the other hand, the Ministry of Health intends to further develop a model, which would provide computational information on the level of minerals (including magnesium) in Water that is supplied to the pools.

 

Ministry Of Health Policies

In view of the fact that before desalination, the residents of Israel benefited from drinking water that contains an average concentration of magnesium around -30 mg per liter, the position of the Ministry is that it must work to return the magnesium to drinking water, to the level established before desalination, and after feasibility studies, applications And the cost - the benefit.

As part of the work of a professional committee appointed to study this issue in the Ministry of Health, a cost/benefit analysis of adding magnesium to water in terms of health was carried out.

According to this analysis, which was based on existing information in the medical literature on this topic and on studies that indicate a relationship between low concentration of manganese in drinking water and morbidity and mortality from cardiovascular disease, the return of 30 mg per liter of magnesium to water was highly feasible. And in its wake, it is expected to decrease about 250 cases of coronary heart disease deaths each year.

Because water is used by the general population, and magnesium affects by drinking and the need for food that includes water in an indirect way (drinking water by animals that are a source of food, preparing food and washing it), it is expected to add Magnesium water will be more effective and more effective