Magnesium eases depression
Magnesium plays a role in energy metabolism and in the brain. In the first phase of this study, doctors measured magnesium levels in people with depression. In the second phase, doctors evaluated participants who were deficient in magnesium—below 1.8 mg per deciliter of blood in men and below 1.9 mg in women—and who had a score representing at least minor depression on the standard Beck Depression Inventory questionnaire.
The 60 people who continued in the study took two 250 mg tablets of magnesium oxide per day, or a placebo. After two months, those taking magnesium saw a 50 percent greater improvement in depression scores.
By the end of the study, about 90 percent of those in the magnesium group had returned to normal circulating levels of magnesium, compared to about half of those in the placebo group.
Mom’s folic acid benefits kids
Most moms know that taking folic acid in the first three months of pregnancy aids baby’s spinal development. This study shows there are psychological benefits for the child as well when moms take folic acid through birth.
Doctors asked the parents of 39 children at age seven about their personalities. About half the women had taken folic acid throughout their pregnancies; the other half, only through the first three months. Those taking folic acid the entire time had kids that demonstrated higher levels of emotional intelligence and resilience. Doctors found a direct link between mothers’ folic acid levels at birth and the child’s emotional health.
Reference: Nutrition; March, 2017, Vol. 35, 56-60