This is from Life Extension Foundation
The February 2010 issue of the Journal
of Asthma published the findings of a clinical trial involving
adults with mild to moderate asthma which noted improvements in asthma
control and quality of life after six months of supplementation with
magnesium.
Alexandra Kazaks, PhD of Bastyr
University in Kenmore, Washington, along with colleagues at the
University of California, Davis, randomized 55 asthmatic men and women
aged 21 to 55 to receive 340 milligrams per day magnesium as magnesium
citrate or a placebo for 6.5 months. Bronchial responsiveness, as
assessed by a methacholine challenge test, and pulmonary function,
assessed by spirometry, were evaluated before and after the treatment
period. Questionnaires designed to assess asthma control and quality of
life were administered at the beginning and end of the study, and
exhaled nitric oxide and serum C-reactive protein were measured to
evaluate bronchial and systemic inflammation. Additionally, magnesium in serum,
red blood cells and urine, and total body magnesium stores were
analyzed. Dietary intake of magnesium was quantified via 24-hour dietary
records completed prior to the initial visit and at 3 and 6.5 months.
There were no significant changes
in markers of magnesium status or inflammation observed between baseline and
end of study values or between the treatment and placebo groups.
Nevertheless, bronchial reactivity improved in the group that received
magnesium, as indicated by an increase in the concentration of
methacholine required to result in a 20 percent decrease in forced
expiratory volume. Improvements were also observed in peak expiratory
flow rate, and subjective assessments of asthma control and quality of
life.
The authors remark that
interactions of magnesium with calcium and the influence of the mineral
on the cell membrane confer anti-inflammatory and bronchodilatory
properties that could help improve asthma control. They suggest that the
shorter duration of previous studies that failed to find significant
benefits for magnesium in asthma control may not have been sufficient to effect
improvements. "Although there is conflicting research regarding
magnesium supplementation and asthma outcomes, this study adds to the
body of research that shows a beneficial response to magnesium
supplementation in people who have mild to moderate asthma," they
conclude.
Asthma
During as asthma attack, a cascade of events is launched that results in the
production of histamine and
leukotrienes. Leukotrienes are derived from the inflammatory arachidonic acid.
These inflammatory mediators cause a host of changes in bronchial tissue: they
trigger a dramatic increase in mucus secretion and a
simultaneous rapid constriction of the bronchial smooth muscle, which
narrows the bronchial tubes and reduces the amount of air that can pass
through them. Over the course of the subsequent few hours, inflammatory
cells move into the area, capillaries begin to leak fluid, and direct
tissue damage occurs, triggering further inflammation and swelling. The
net result is wheezing and coughing and eventual trapping of air in the
alveoli (a tiny, thin-walled, capillary-rich sac in the lungs, or air
sac) and smaller airways. This air trapping is most dangerous to the
asthmatic because it progressively limits the amount of air that can be
exchanged between the lungs and the blood stream, eventually causing
rising carbon dioxide levels and falling oxygen levels. The increased
muscular effort required to move air increases oxygen demand, tissue
metabolism, and acid production, eventually resulting in exhaustion and, in
extreme cases, respiratory collapse and arrest.
Why the bronchial tubes become so
sensitive in asthmatics is not fully understood, but research suggests
that immune-system cells known as T cells play a central role. Some T
cells induce inflammation to fight off a foreign threat, while others
reduce inflammation once the threat has subsided. Conditions such as
asthma, in which the body overreacts to threats, may be related to an
imbalance or malfunction of these and other immune-system components
(Tosca MA et al 2003; Howard TD et al 2002; Ray A et al 2000).
The idea behind nutritional
supplementation is to disrupt this inflammatory cascade whenever
possible. For example, omega-3 fatty acids have been shown to inhibit
the production of arachidonic acid, which reduces the concentration of
inflammatory leukotrienes (Wong KW 2005). Other nutrients, such as
curcumin, interfere with other causative factors in the inflammatory
cascade, such as inhibiting nuclear factor kappa beta and an enzyme that
converts arachidonic acid to leukotriene B4.
Several studies have indicated
that patients with asthma have lower levels of magnesium within the
cells lining the airways. When daily magnesium supplementation was given to
children with mild to moderate asthma, a significant decrease in the use of
rescue beta-agonist inhalers was demonstrated (Bede O et al
2003). These results suggest that intracellular magnesium levels are
associated with the severity of asthma and the frequency of asthma
attacks. Maintaining normal magnesium levels appears to be an important
component of asthma therapy.
________________________________
From: Kathy Tankersley <tanke...@iland.net>
To: silver-list@eskimo.com
Sent: Mon, March 29, 2010 12:01:19 PM
Subject: CS>asthma
I am at my wits end with this asthma, I just got
out of the hospital after receiving massive doses of steroids, high powered
anti-botics. There is got to be a better way: Is there anyone on the
list that has 'lived' thur ths and had any progress with CS or any other herb,
etc.? I am ready to drink poison if it would help. If you have had any
experience with what I am describing, please help. Thanks,
Kathy
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