Getting the ratio right

Q: I recently read an article recommending a much higher intake of magnesium than calcium. But haven’t you said the opposite? What’s the deal?

Dr. Wright: I can’t imagine what would happen to children growing up on a diet higher in magnesium than calcium, but I don’t think it would be pretty!

Don’t get me wrong: magnesium is important for all sorts of body functions, and it has some great therapeutic effects (for more on magnesium’s benefits, check out the May 2003 issue of Nutrition & Healing, which subscribers can download for free by visiting www.wrightnewsletter.com and logging on with the username and password listed on page 8 of your most recent newsletter). And you also should be taking it along with calcium to fight bone loss.

But as helpful as magnesium can be, your body needs more calcium than magnesium. The human skeleton is proof of that: calcium, not magnesium, is found in the greatest abundance in your bones.