Magnesium Important for Lung Health

By CP Staff

According to a new clinical trial, reduced consumption of magnesium may be related to an increased risk and progression of asthma. Currently, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimate that 34.1 million Americans have asthma; 7.3 percent of the adult population and 9.4 percent of children are thought to be afflicted. The prevalence of asthma also is increasing rapidly, as data from the CDC indicates that between 1980 and 1994, the overall prevalence of asthma increased by 75 percent and among children under the age of 5, asthma rates increased by 160 percent.

In this new study, subjects included 55 adults between 21 and 55 years of age with mild to moderate asthma who currently used beta-adrenergic agonists or inhaled corticosteroids to control their asthma. The subjects were given a supplement of 170 mg magnesium twice a day or a placebo for 6.5 months. Magnesium levels were evaluated and lung function was measured by pulmonary function tests including peak expiratory flow rate and forced expiratory volume in one minute (FEV-1). The subjects also underwent methacholine challenge tests, which is a test that uses the chemical methacholine to induce constriction in the lungs to evaluate bronchial hyper-responsiveness. Additionally, the subjects were evaluated for both C-reactive protein (CPR), which is a marker of systemic inflammation, and their exhaled nitric oxide (NO), which is a marker of airway inflammation. The subjects also completed a questionnaire regarding asthma-related quality of life and control of their asthma symptoms.

The results showed that the subjects receiving magnesium supplementation had an improvement of 5.8 percent in lung function, based on the peak expiratory flow rate, compared to the control subjects. Also, the subjects in the magnesium group required significantly more methacholine to cause a 20 percent drop in FEV-1 compared to the placebo group. Furthermore, the subjects receiving magnesium supplementation reported a significant improvement in the control of both their asthma symptoms and asthma-related quality of life.

The researchers concluded, “Adults who received oral magnesium supplements showed improvement in objective measures of bronchial reactivity to methacholine and peak expiratory flow rate and in subjective measures of asthma control and quality of life.”

Reference:

Kazaks AG, Uriu-Adams JY, Albertson TE, Shenoy SF, Stern JS. Effect of oral magnesium supplementation on measures of airway resistance and subjective assessment of asthma control and quality of life in men and women with mild to moderate asthma: a randomized placebo controlled trial. J Asthma. 2010 Feb;47(1):83-92.