I've got adrenal fatigue, and, as often accompanies this condition, a severe magnesium deficiency. Magnesium is crucial for healthy adrenal function. During times of stress, either emotional or physical, the adrenal glands are called on to respond to the stressor, namely via the production of cortisol and adrenaline, among other hormones. You can imagine that if the diet is producing an inadequate supply of magnesium, one would run out fairly quickly. When these tiny glands malfunction, chronic illness can occur. This is where I'm at. I was popping magnesium citrate supplements like crazy all day long and eating foods rich in Mg, to no avail. All I wound up with was diarrhea. I wasn't obtaining results at all and continued to feel crummy.
I was digging around online when I saw the term "transdermal magnesium." Intrigued, I looked into it. Then I came to amazon.com, because I feel the reviews here are authentic and I can trust what people are saying. I decided I had nothing to lose and bought some.
As soon as it arrived, I wasted no time and applied it all over my body. I won't lie; this "oil" stings and/or itches, especially on a cut or wound of any kind. But it also heals the cuts very quickly. I didn't feel anything happening the first time I used it, but during the second time, all of a sudden I felt a warmth underneath my skin (presumably in my bloodstream), and I felt like someone had "plugged me in." [Note adrenal fatigue occurs when the adrenal glands' cells are devoid of the necessary mineral reserves to sustain them, so you just sorta fizzle out. It's no fun, believe me.] My energy didn't soar through the roof or anything, but for me, I knew that I was onto something.
I've been using it 2x/day for several months now, and I refuse to be without it. It goes where I go. I sleep much more soundly, whereas before I had trouble falling and staying asleep. The anxiety that I suffered for a decade is also so much better. I feel more alert and more in control of my thoughts. It's also eliminated the heart palpitations that accompany adrenal fatigue. I could not be more pleased with this product.
By supplementing orally, it can take a year or even longer to replenish the cells' Mg reserves. I've read that using transdermal Mg, replenishment can occur in as little as a few months. While my case is extreme, I have no doubt that healthy folks would benefit from this too. In my opinion, we are all likely Mg deficient to some degree. For optimal health and vitality, we could all use more powerful magnesium! And, as we all know, our food quality these days is subpar and just not supplying us with everything that we need.
UPDATE 2/12/12:
True to what I've read, I was able to stop using this oil after only a few months. So, even in my extremely depleted (read: stressed) state, this oil was able to build my Mg reserves back up in a very short time. Now I make sure to eat a lot of bone broth, organ meats, and I juice veggies everyday. A few weeks ago, I applied some Mg oil again to ensure I still have a sufficient supply, and I didn't feel any difference. So it seems that I'm able to obtain the magnesium I need from my diet once again. I'm grateful for this transdermal oil; I believe it would have taken me much longer to build up my reserves if I had only used the oral form of supplementation.
I was born with rosacea on the upper back of my arms and haven't found a solution until I bought this. Within the first few applications (I only applied once per day), the bumps and redness reduced tremendously. The first week of applications did come with some burning/itching feeling, but it was to my understanding that it was curing the bacteria that had built up. Since then, I've applied this daily and the skin is completely smooth (no bumps) and the redness is almost gone. It's incredible.
I also applied this to others areas such as my face and actually watched a pimple reduce before my eyes in a matter of seconds! I put some magnesium oil on a q-tip and applied to a canker sore and it went away the next day.
This stuff really is amazing when using to absorb through the skin.
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I use this exclusively to brush my teeth (one spray or so on the toothbrush, sometimes I rinse out my mouth then rinse off the brush, spray it again and brush again). Sometimes I also spray it in my mouth as a type of freshener and also for an oral dose.
I also use this as a deodorant and if I ever get a zit, I apply this stuff to it throughout the day and it works like a charm.
I've read quite a bit online of other people using magnesium oil to brush their teeth and using it as a deodorant; and I know using it to brush your teeth is an unorthodox use of the stuff, but it works! My teeth feel VERY glossy and clean after brushing with magnesium oil, and I also like that by using it I'm getting exposed to a good dose of magnesium. Even if it wasn't supplying me with magnesium (which I would find hard to believe since with brushing my teeth with it I probably swallow a fair amount of the stuff), it works better than any toothpaste I've tried.
I do have tooth discoloration, so my teeth probably wouldn't look very impressive to anyone. I also have very soft enamel and am prone to getting cavities. But after reading about fluoride in toothpaste I decided to stop using my prescription high-fluoride toothpaste, and eventually switched over to using magnesium oil; and this year when I went to the dentist after using magnesium oil to brush my teeth for months, I had no cavities. It was also the first time I heard that I did a 'pretty good job' cleaning my teeth.
It does taste pretty putrid at first (very, very strong), but after getting used to it I don't mind it at all (I found the same to be true for the 'orthodox' topical application!). Anyway, if you don't want to brush your teeth with it, don't lose any sleep over that. I'm just saying for anyone who's curious, I've been using it for probably over a year now and I love it.
P.S. I also *sometimes* add this to my drinking water. I was very skeptical of using this on my teeth and in water as on the label it says "for external use only," but I did a lot of research and I kept seeing references to people using it this way.
Here's an interesting study. The conclusion: "An additional Mg salt (Mg-chloride) fortification of drinking water is capable of inhibiting atherogenesis in male LDL-receptor-deficient mice. That is done in a lower concentration of Mg than previously reported."And if you check out this PDF:
...you will see it recommends adding about 2/3 teaspoon of magnesium oil to 1.5 L of water (about 6-7 cups) and drinking it throughout the day. I will say that it can have a *LAXATIVE EFFECT* so if you're trying this for the first time, I wouldn't do it when I was about to go out or something.
So, this is the swiss army knife of toiletries in my opinion. Pimple 'medication,' deodorant, tooth'paste', mineral supplement for water (okay, not necessarily a toiletry but bear with me here). And of course you can use it topically as the product recommends.
Maybe I'm just weird? >_< Well take care, and I hope you got something out of this. I encourage everyone to do their own research and experiment for themselves, as well.
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This is one of two products on Amazon I considered purchasing, the other option being, Ancient Minerals Ultra Pure Magnesium Oil 8 oz.. It appeared that each of these 8 oz bottles held the same oil with the same percentage of magnesium chloride to water, but I couldn't determine that percentage precisely because neither product specified the balance on the buying pages. I highly recommend either of these products.
I also recommend reading reviews posted on other mg oil offerings, for info on types of uses which have been successful. I had read those, in addition to having made Google searches on mg chloride brine water prior to looking for the actual product I would purchase. Of course I'm faithful to Amazon, buying here whenever possible, due to this company's awesome venues available to authors for publishing and promoting their books; and due to Amazon's easy, extensive, economical availability of nearly anything anyone could need or want. I also buy here due to the valued assistance and plethora of useful information in customer reviews.
As you know if you've researched magnesium oil (which is not a true oil but feels like one), many people with severe magnesium deficiencies are using this type of oil transdermally to get around the difficulties of ingestion of various types of magnesium preparations. Mg deficiencies are becoming more and more prevalent, in addition to an increased awareness of the vital necessity of this mineral for health and maintenance of nearly ALL bodily functions. According to research, magnesium is found in and on bones, muscles, tissues, and cells; but it is not prevalent enough in blood to be determined as deficient via blood testing. I would recommend doing various Google searches on magnesium to discover how individuals have worked with this mineral in various ways to alleviate a variety of severe health issues.
I believe that magnesium deficiency shows itself in different ways in different individuals, possibly due to the uniqueness of each individual's habits and needs (and possibly due to individual differences in a "Dynamic Chemical Balance Default" or "DCBD", which is my term for an evolving concept I'm working on). In my case, the barometers of deficiency show up most dramatically in heavy cramping of abdominal and back muscles, sometimes hands and feet, even neck and jaw. The deficiency also shows itself through shortness of breath, anxiety, and lower quality of sleep. I have been taking mg oxide in tablet form for several months and have received minimal (but adequate) and slightly increasing relief of symptoms from ingestion of 1500 mg /day taken in tablet form evenings and mornings (the side effect of loose or liquid bowel movement is a blessing and feels more normal to me, and to my holistic doctor friend, than previous types of "regularity"). I decided against use of "Slow Mag" or types of mg capsules which have a higher percentage of calcium to magnesium, because it has recently been determined (more like speculated, but I agree with this) that the body needs a higher percentage of magnesium, in order for calcium and other minerals to work properly, and because calcium can work against magnesium if the balance of Calcium is higher.
Since I could see that any ingestion method would likely take some time to develop or "open" the body's ability to absorb the mineral, I wondered if I might find a magnesium essential oil of some type which I could apply on my skin.
Allow me to interject a sideline of information which relates directly to the body's (in) ability to assimilate ingested magnesium. I have been aware for quite some time that most foods are now impregnated with soybean products, through a great variety of methods:
Through feeding of animals; through pharming efforts (yes, that's a correct spelling; Google that term and you'll feel like you've stepped into an X-Files movie); through genetic alteration of grown foods; and through additives to foods sold (actually pushed, often through cholesterol phobia) to grocers and restaurants. I've read reports from a variety of doctors and scientists who believe firmly and frighteningly that soybean products give a strong (basically an overdose) estrogen effect (causing premature sexual development, aging and other ailments); and that soybean products are toxic anti-nutrients which block minerals (including magnesium) from being absorbed or assimilated through the intestines (Google "soy" and "harm" and/or read my op-ed on Soy in my book, The DAYS of COFFEE & DONUTS: Non Toxic Soapbox Satire: Who or What is De-Kindling Life? (Nonfiction).
In addition to the reported detrimental effects of overdoses of soy products, even light studies will expose that most of the additives (even the purportedly "natural" ones) in foods debilitate the variety of fats and oils (yes including cholesterol, which is a vitally needed nutrient) which the body needs for most functions it performs, including storage of minerals and vitamins essential for not only basic functions, but for stress or extra ordinary demands of the body when more of these minerals, especially magnesium, are required immediately and desperately, sometimes for an extended period.
If you're interested, take a minute to Google the food additive, "Citric Acid" (aka Sodium Citrate). It has been used in cigarette paper to keep it burning when the smoker isn't puffing. It is also known to break bonds in fat molecules. If cholesterol phobia had any truth to it (I believe there is no truth to that decades pushed phobia), I could see why this might sound good. However, it is my assumption and speculation that when the bonds in fat molecules are broken (or in oil, etc.), they will not have capacity to store the vitamins and minerals they are meant to store. Where's magnesium when you need it? It's been depleted due to oils, fats, etc., being debilitated every which way by nearly every food additive currently used in all prepared foods, including basic cow's milk, cream, and butter. When citric acid isn't added to foods, phosphates are (often both are added plus other "items" which debilitate needed oils), which accomplish the same dissolution of fats and oils, as you can see when you use soap or detergent to wash grease from pans. The soap (phosphates) dissolves the fat, which becomes water soluble and washes away. That's great for external cleaning of culinary utensils (if you rinse them well), but it's not healthful for internal bodily functions which need fully bonded and functioning fats and oils for many vital necessities, including for storing essential nutrients. Within this current, horrifyingly misguided food and drug (anti-cholesterol drugs, etc.) preparation system and situation, a person could weigh several hundred pounds and still have no useable fats or oils in his system.
A friend of mine recently suffered the death of a daughter in her 30's. The daughter, according to the report from her physician, had been given (by a different physician) a new medication which surprised everyone by suddenly depleting the magnesium in her system. Upon retiring for the night, the woman died, from one heartbeat to the next. According to most current speculation, Magnesium releases or relaxes muscles, while Calcium tenses them. According to the reports, the woman's heart contracted, but wouldn't release, due to the sudden depletion of magnesium. She died in minutes.
I'm thankful for this magnesium oil, and for its reasonable price. I've been using it for about a week and am definitely noticing a decrease in symptoms which I've learned to associate with magnesium deficiency. The positive results are much more dramatic than I've received from ingesting the mg tabs.
Now I can sneeze, cough, and move suddenly without the feeling (and fearing) that my entire body is going to fall into (and has in the past) a severe cramping attack. I'm sleeping much more normally and soundly, for longer periods at a time. Sometimes I sleep peacefully, with good dreams, for 6 or 8 hrs straight! I can breathe normally most of the time, and only once in a while now I notice the lead heart feeling or an anxiety level need to get a huge yawn or take a deeper breath, which I can't seem to do. When I've felt the magnesium input take hold in my system, which it does suddenly at times, the only way I can describe the enormously welcome sensation is of suddenly being NORMAL, STRONG, RIGHT, and CLEAR.
At some point, I might try some of the other mg oil products, to compare to this one, but so far, I'm VERY pleased with this one. The "oil" seems to work best when applied on my skin after a hot shower, with the pores open. I sometimes spray it all over my body and leave it on. Other times I just spray it over my chest, abdomen, and tops of my feet. Sometimes it itches mildly for a while, but the feeling passes. Others have noted having more of a skin irritation upon initial uses, but I have not had this problem. Possibly this preparation has a lower percentage of mg to water than others, but the oily feel is definitely strong enough to allow me to believe I'm getting enough Mg concentration. [Update: 2/24/10: I now know that this solution is saturated and pure, so it has as much Magnesium Chloride as possible; it has as much or more than other magnesium oils available. See comments posted under this review. ] I do wish the products labeling would give this percentage information.
Thank you Swanson and Amazon for this economical offering of this life restoring product,
Linda Shelnutt
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After 16 years of smoking, I finally decided to quit. Unfortunately, along with my quit I also decided to do a detox diet/cleanse and wound up with a staph infection due to the amount of toxins trying to leave my body--Well, that's what I thought, anyway. To make matters worse, I was prescribed a regimen of antibiotics that I discovered later had robbed me of any magnesium I had. I thought I was dying. I was in pain from head-to-toe, I couldn't think straight, sleeping was out-of-the-question, was having horrible anxiety attacks, heart palpitations, eye twitches, muscle pains and spasms, and was on an emotional roller-coaster.
Then I discovered I was magnesium deficient--quite by accident--which is another story by itself. I immediately ran to my local natural foods store and picked up a calcium/magnesium supplement. I felt a little better within a couple hours of taking it. I wasn't as stiff and sore, and I could somewhat relax. Then, I discovered that I was already getting enough calcium, so I decided to try a strictly magnesium supplement. Even better. I was consistently feeling better, sleeping better, and my anxiety was completely gone.
When I saw this oil, I had to try it. Sometimes I tend to take a little too much mag and I get the classic 'bathroom' symptoms. Not with Mag Oil. Your body only uses what it needs. I've had tremendous success with this product already, and am happy to report that I'm down to taking 1 dose of my oral magnesium per day because of this product. The rest of the time, I simply spray this oil on my hands, arms, feet, or any other part of my body that is achy or tense, and I can feel the results right away without worrying about transit time/dose that goes along with oral supplementation.
Another nice effect is softer/smoother skin! I've finally gotten brave enough to try it on my face, and the results are nothing short of amazing. My skin looks younger, and any acne I get from my smoking detox heals quickly and without scars. Yes, it does sting quite a bit when applied to the face and some other areas of the body, but it's not enough of an issue for me to stop using it. I know that the stinging isn't a bad thing, so I endure it for twenty minutes and then wash it off.
I've also been using it for brushing my teeth, and my teeth are whiter and less opaque...and gums are looking more pink and healthy.
This stuff is nothing short of amazing. I won't be without it. I'm thinking of stocking up on some Mag Chloride flakes from Swanson's so that I can make my own.
Keep in mind that if you aren't getting any results from the Mag Oil, you may not be getting enough of some of the other minerals like Calcium or Potassium which assist Magnesium absorption. Or, it may be that you aren't deficient. At any rate, just keep using it and see if you notice a change. It could be that you're so deficient that you also need to take an oral supplement (like I did, at first) until you build your levels back up.
To good health! :)
Since learning about Dr. Bronner's soap in 1983, I've gradually eliminated every other cleaning product from our home. It's the most economical, safe, great smelling (we prefer the eucalyptus) product ever invented. We use it to clean EVERYTHING. Kitchen, bathroom, floors. I use it in my HE front loading washer. One 32 oz. bottle lasts for months because it is so concentrated and a tiny, tiny bit goes such a long way. Our house always smells so good. I even started washing the dogs with it (BE SURE TO DILUTE!!!!!!!) Back in 1983 when we were white water raft guides is how I learned about it, the national park where we took some canoe trips only allowed Dr. Bronners to be used to wash with in the lake as it so pure and causes no damage. Totally safe around babies. We save a fortune now in cleaning products and laundry soap and dish soap that is no longer needed. If you are looking to save money for your family and have a healthy home, this is the way to go. There are articles in the thousands you can find online to read about Dr. Bronners soap. At first you will want to think you need to use more than you need but you really only need the smallest amount. I only use one teaspoon diluted in about 1/2 cup of warm water to wash a fully packed largest load my huge washer will hold. Same for cleaning the kitchen and bathroom, just one teaspoon diluted in a small bucket of hot water cleans the whole room. No more toxic cleaner smells in our house!!!!
