Upping your daily dose of magnesium could reduce your risk of dementia as you get older.
People who consume more than 550 mg of magnesium every day have a brain age that’s around one year younger by the time they reach the age of 55 compared to someone taking the recommended dose of 350 mg.
The sooner you start taking higher doses of magnesium, the better it is for your brain health, say researchers from the Australian National University. Its neuroprotective effects—which can combat cognitive decline—can be seen in people who are in their forties and even younger.
The researchers tested the effects of magnesium on a group of around 6,000 people aged between 43 and 73, who were taking more than 550 mg a day. The higher amounts were preventing brain shrinkage, which is linked to better cognitive function and a lower risk of dementia.
As well as supplements, magnesium is in spinach and nuts, leafy green vegetables, and seeds.
It’s a simple solution to a problem that is the world’s seventh major killer, and to which medicine has no answers. “People of all ages should be playing closer attention to their magnesium intake,” said Khawlah Alateeq, one of the researchers.
