High magnesium intake may help reduce the risk of Type 2 diabetes, two recent American studies show.
In a study based at Tufts University in Boston, about 1,200 men and 1,500 women completed food frequency questionnaires, allowing researchers to track how much magnesium they were consuming in their diets. None of the participants had diabetes.
Those who consumed the most magnesium had improved insulin sensitivity compared to those who consumed the least magnesium, the researchers found. "Improved insulin sensitivity may be one mechanism by which higher dietary magnesium intake may reduce the risk of developing Type 2 diabetes," they said.
Research from Harvard Medical School also points to a role for magnesium in helping to prevent Type 2 diabetes. In this study, researchers examined the food frequency questionnaires of about 39,000 women without diabetes.
After six years, they found that those with the highest level of magnesium intake had a significantly reduced risk of Type 2 diabetes. They concluded that a higher intake of magnesium plays a role "in reducing the risk of developing Type 2 diabetes, especially in overweight women."
Magnesium is available in supplement form and in such foods as skim milk, cold cereal, dark bread, bananas, spinach and orange juice. In the Tufts University study, the median daily intake of magnesium was 298 mg among men and 281 mg among women. A cup of cooked spinach contains 157 mg of magnesium.
Sources: J Am Coll Nutr. 2006 Dec;25(6):486-92; Diabetes Care. 2004 Jan;27(1):59-65
