Good news – magnesium protects against cancer.

The levels of vitamin D, magnesium and calcium were measured to assess whether they might have to do with protection from cancer. The level of vitamin D and magnesium was significantly associated with protection from cancer while calcium level was not. The mechanism of action is not included. (1)

The mechanism of action is likely to involve the control of apoptosis by the active hormone form of vitamin D, calcitriol, (3), and the role of magnesium in providing the energy for apoptosis. (2) White blood cells during times of normal function can identify damaged, old, pre-cancerous, cancerous, or infected or foreign cells and give an enzymatic blast of chemicals that kills the cell and engulfs it completely, before the killed cell can break down and spill its cellular contents into the surrounding area.

An influx of cell contents into the surrounding area would be toxic and potentially lead to more cells being damaged. The enzymatic blast of chemicals of apoptosis requires magnesium, (2), and signaling white blood cells to be in the mode of autophagy requires calcitriol. (3)

“In the context of cancer, calcitriol regulates the cell cycle, induces apoptosis, promotes cell differentiation and acts as anti-inflammatory factor within the tumor microenvironment.”

(Díaz-Muñoz et al., 2015) (3)

“In addition, the impact of Mg2+ on apoptosis initiation and execution in various cells has to be investigated in more detail.”

( Pilchova et al., 2017) (2)

Excessive amounts of vitamin D can be toxic and can be stored in fat tissue. Magnesium levels in the blood represent only one percent of the body’s total amount of magnesium which makes a blood test to check for deficiency not very helpful or accurate except in very severe deficiency – ideally we don’t want to reach severe deficiency. Symptoms of magnesium deficiency can include pain, anxiety, and muscle cramps.

To have adequate supplies of magnesium or vitamin D it is also important to have enough protein food in the diet as both nutrients are stored on transport protein or also ATP molecules in the case of magnesium. The transport protein or ATP molecule holds the vitamin D or magnesium in an inactive form. The body carefully controls how much active hormone D or electrically active ionic magnesium there is available within the cell fluid or in the blood stream.

  • More information about sources of magnesium in the diet or from topical sources (it can be absorbed by the skin through hair follicle pores), is available in this post: To have optimal Magnesium needs Protein and Phospholipids too.
  • More information about symptoms of magnesium deficiency and chronic conditions that may involve low levels of magnesium within cell fluid is available here: Magnesium – essential for eighty percent of our body’s chemistry..
  • More information about how many grams of protein might be needed for health is available in a post about kidney health – adequate water is protective and excessive amounts of protein eaten regularly may be harmful to kidney health over many years (i.e. three ounces of meat in a meal is a healthy amount, while regularly eating an 8-12 ounce steak may eventually be harmful for kidney health): Make every day Kidney Appreciation Day.
  • Vitamin D3 form may be a more bioactive form of the vitamin if taking a supplement than the vitamin D2 form. During spring through autumn months getting 15-30 minutes of midday sunshine with face and arms exposed to the sun can provide enough vitamin D from it being formed in the skin from cholesterol. Vitamin D is actually a seco-steroid and excessive levels of the hormone form can cause mood changes including anger or irritability.
  • It is available in fortified milk & milk substitutes, and in fortified yogurt or cheese, but not necessarily all yogurt or cheese, read the nutrient label. Cod liver oil and some types of fish can provide vitamin D. Egg yolk has a small amount and some types of mushrooms may have a small amount. (healthline.com)
  • The standard RDA amount taken daily (~ 600 IU depending on age and gender) may help the immune system protect against respiratory infection, while taking a mega-dose after an infection occurred did not seem to help with recovery from a respiratory infection. (Vit D Respiratory Infections/bmj.com)

Disclaimer: This information is provided for educational purposes within the guidelines of Fair Use. It is not intended to provide individual guidance. Please seek a health care provider for individualized health care guidance.

Reference List

  1. Wesselink E, Kok DE, Bours MJL, et al. Vitamin D, magnesium, calcium, and their interaction in relation to colorectal cancer recurrence and all-cause mortality [published online ahead of print, 2020 Mar 19]. Am J Clin Nutr. 2020;nqaa049. doi:10.1093/ajcn/nqaa049 https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32190892/?from_term=nutrition&from_filter=ds1.y_1&from_sort=date&from_size=50&from_pos=6
  2. Ivana Pilchova, Katarina Klacanova, Zuzana Tatarkova, et al., The Involvement of Mg2+ in Regulation of Cellular and Mitochondrial Functions. Oxidative Medicine and Cellular Longevity, Special Issue, Magnesium and Other Biometals in Oxidative Medicine and Redox Biology Vol 2017, 6797460, 8 pages, https://doi.org/10.1155/2017/6797460 https://www.hindawi.com/journals/omcl/2017/6797460/
  3. Díaz L, Díaz-Muñoz M, García-Gaytán AC, Méndez I. Mechanistic Effects of Calcitriol in Cancer Biology. Nutrients. 2015;7(6):5020–5050. Published 2015 Jun 19. doi:10.3390/nu7065020 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4488829/

Ellagitannins and red raspberries

Prior to the research on pomegranates and ellagitannins research was being performed on the use of red raspberries for their health and anticancer benefits. The summary points are that the whole fruit, the mixture of a variety of phytonutrients provides the benefits and that an isolated singe phytonutrient may be less bioavailable and less bioactive – less chemically likely to provide benefits as the mixture of phytonutrients that the whole food provides. An article from 2001 discusses this in more detail and mentions that early work on pomegranates suggested they would be an even better source of the group of ellagitannins and other polyphenols.

The compounds when working together within the body seem to help make cancer cells stop dividing and start dying by apoptosis like normal cells would – and without having any toxic effects on other normal healthy cells. The ellagitannins and other phytonutrients in red raspberries also seemed to prevent precancerous cells from becoming cancerous – dividing at above average rate of growth.

Other health benefits of the whole fruit used as a fruit puree equivalent to eating one cup of red raspberries per day, providing 40 mg of ellagitannins, included:

“European medical studies also demonstrate that red raspberry ellagitannins lower the incidence of birth defects, promote wound healing, reduce heart disease, and may reduce or reverse chemically induced liver fibrosis. In addition, the ellagic acid produced from the ellagitannins has anti-bacterial and anti-viral properties.”

Read more: The Truth About Ellagic Acid and Red Raspberries,    https://jonbarron.org/article/truth-about-ellagic-acid-and-red-raspberries

Ellagitannins and pomegranates was a discussion begun in a previous post: Pomegranate polyphenols and Microglia M2 Activation. I didn’t include the information in my summary but one of the links mentions that whole pomegranate juice / juice made with the peel / provides about 2 grams per liter of ellagitannins which would be many times more than 40 milligrams. Two grams would be 2000 milligrams and a liter is slightly less than a quart which is four cups, so roughly the whole pomegranate juice/extract is providing 500 milligrams per cup. A cup of juice would be more concentrated, being a liquid, compared to a cup of loosely packed whole red raspberries with seeds and air space, so a cup of raspberry puree or red raspberry juice would likely provide more than 40 milligrams.

Black raspberries are a dark purple color were not mentioned in the 2001 article but a more recent study on cancer therapy from 2016 mentions them as a source of ellagic acid so they may have an equivalent amount of the beneficial phytonutrients.

Read more: Black raspberries in cancer clinical trials: Past, present and future.   https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5008867/

Blueberries and blackberries and other berries are good sources of a variety of beneficial phytonutrients. Many types have the most prevalent phytonutrients listed and extraction methods that are typically used for commercial products are discussed in this research review: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5384171/

A shorter article discussing phytonutrients found in blueberries, blackberries and raspberries in a more general way:   http://berryhealth.fst.oregonstate.edu/symposium/lukehowardabstract.htm

Disclaimer: Opinions are my own and the information is provided for educational purposes within the guidelines of fair use. While I am a Registered Dietitian this information is not intended to provide individual health guidance. Please see a health professional for individual health care purposes.

Why care about health? It’s about statistics.

The rate of cancer incidence has increased greatly in many countries and is expected to continue to increase, particularly in association with the aging of the population. Cancer is more often a diagnosis after age 65.  The rate of thyroid cancer in particular has increased greatly in women. The rate of developing some type of cancer during one’s lifetime is expected to reach 1 in 2 men and 1 in 3 women by the yea 2050, (MedScape) – or a more general 1 in 2 people, (medicalnewstoday) – those are not good odds.

It is common during youth to feel secure about health but our bodies tend to run out of stored nutrients as we age and metabolic pathways that we depend on to rebuild muscle and remove toxins or defective cells can become less effective. A healthy immune system also protects us from our own body’s normal rebuilding/regrowth of new cells. Defective ones are typically removed from growth areas in bone marrow before they enter circulation. Cancer cells are also removed on a regular basis when our immune systems are healthy.

Magnesium deficiency is a topic I keep stressing because the immune cells require magnesium in order to perform the apoptosis, killing, of defective or precancerous cells. The body’s defense systems are well developed but need fuel on a daily basis in order to be able to function as nature designed. While immune cells need magnesium in order to purposefully kill defective cells by apoptosis ( an enzyme is inserted into the cell which causes it to die and then the immune cell engulfs the debris and removes it for detoxification and excretion from the body), a cell that is deficient in magnesium or calcium may also undergo apoptosis due to the deficiency. (magnesium and apoptosis)

Too little Nrf2 may reduce immune system and antioxidant health but too much can be a problem in cancer cells that grow too rapidly. (Nrf2 overproduction and cancer)

Another person writing about the recent research in the area of Nrf2 shares more information about foods that help promote Nrf2 and how nature may have built in a mechanism within some foods that help prevent an over production of the important protein (Nrf2). See: “Activate Nrf2, then optimize: Brussel Sprouts.” – Bill Lagokos (patreon) /Spoiler, if not a fan of Brussel Sprouts the healthy phytonutrient that is discussed is also found in cruciferous vegetables including cabbage, cauliflower, broccoli, kohlrabi, and kale.

I personally am more sensitive to the group, especially if served raw or in larger quantities, but find steamed kale everyday tolerable to my digestive system. The bloating effect may be due to our good guy bacteria enjoying the fiber rich vegetables so much they produce the excess gas – but it can be a sign of healthy bacteria in our digestive tract. Irritable Bowel Syndrome can be affected by any food that causes bloating effects possibly due to TRP channel’s being activated by increased pressure. People with a history of IBS and other chronic pain syndromes may be suffereing from an underlying issue with overactive TRP ion channels. IBS and TRP channels are discussed on this site in a previous post. TRP channels are discussed in more detail with links on another website: Chronic Itch, migraines, IBS and stress; – that is one part frm a longer series: Relaxation and Stress, which is continued in:  Preeclampsia & TRP Channels.

Disclaimer: Opinions are my own and the information is provided for educational purposes within the guidelines of fair use. While I am a Registered Dietitian this information is not intended to provide individual health guidance. Please see a health professional for individual health care purposes.

The Glycocalyx, Our Jelly Filling

The glycocalyx is a free form matrix made up of a jelly like mixture of starches, fluid, ions and other goo. Gelatin desserts are well known examples of a free form matrix supported by the starch, pectin. The glycocalyx jelly layer may act like glue between cells or like sealant coating the interior and exterior of pipes in plumbing repair. It protects our surfaces around cells and the lining of blood vessels and organs. The stickiness allows cellular interactions to take place more easily between white blood cells and protein receptors found in cell membranes. Imagine trying to build a garden hose out of lettuce leaves and strawberry jam – that is kind of how a blood vessel is made.

A gelatin dessert is

The faster current in blood vessels can flow on while white blood cells can pause and perform tasks safely sticking in the slower goo of the glycocalyx layer. It reminds me of the muddy bottom of river beds where minnows hide and frogs lay eggs. The glycolipids and glycoproteins may be long and branching like sea-weed and algae and the fibrous mixture may be like a net, slowing down and trapping things flowing by in the blood stream or in other vessels like airways and the digestive track. (Strolling through the skin, a live action video of the fibrous collagen network that supports our skin and other ligaments, blood vessels and organs, youtube.)

The inside of a jelly jar.

Our intestines are miles long and wide open to every passing food particle unless our cells are replaced regularly and are well coated with the glycocalyx layer. The digestive track has the shortest lived cells in the body. They are replaced every seven days on average – that is a lot of miles of cells for our white blood cells to patrol in order to identify the decaying ones and provide them a quick death by apoptosis.

Apoptosis is nature’s control over pre-cancerous, decaying cells. Well nourished white blood cells can recognize the old or infected cells, give them a little enzyme blast of death and then engulf the waste material, resulting in no inflammation or discomfort to us. It happens every day. Apoptosis requires the white blood cell to have nutrient building blocks for all the chemical steps in the process, and the white blood cell membrane has to join with the other cell membrane temporarily probably occurring within the glycocalyx layer.

The intestines also need plenty of fiber from our diets to build and rebuild the jelly layer coating its surfaces. Animal foods do not offer any fiber for building this protective layer and a diet high in meat and dairy and refined grains can leave the body more open to allergens and infection. Fiber is found in all plant foods and whole grains. A fiber pill or fortified food is unlikely to meet our need for a variety of different starches. Vine ripened produce has a higher content of some of the essential types of starches then produce that is picked early and forced to ripen with plant hormones. Frozen and canned vegetables are picked at peak ripeness and then processed rapidly. They lose some nutrients in processing but will retain value over time. Fresh produce will retain nutrient value longer when stored as recommended for the variety.

Some natural food sources of healthy types of fiber include: Carrots, apples, pears, pre-ripened peaches and nectarines, berries, cherries, sweet potatoes, onions, garlic, peas, green beans, other beans, nuts, seeds, guava, turnips, mushrooms, corn, leeks, dark greens, fenugreek, aloe vera, slippery elm powder, marshmallow root, cinnamon, turmeric, horseradish and ginger. And other whole fruits, vegetables, herbs, and spices would also be sources of fiber. It is found in all plant foods.

Glucosamine is one of the super starches. It is important within bone tissue and may help those with arthritis problems. A typical supplement size is a large 1500 mg capsule once a day or three 500 mg tablets. Supplemental glucosamine is usually extracted from shells of crustaceans and can be a risk if there is an allergy to seafood. Glucosamine derived from corn has been developed and hopefully will make it into a variety of foods soon. Glucosamine derived from corn is available as a vegan source of the supplement at Deva Nutrition: [devanutrition.com].

/Disclosure: This information is provided for educational purposes within the guidelines of fair use. While I am a Registered Dietitian this information is not intended to provide individual health guidance. Please see a health professional for individual health care purposes./

85. [dvd.sagepub.com] Noble, M., Drake-Hollan, A., Hyperglycaemia and the vascular glycocalyx: the key to microalbuminaria and cardiovascular disease in diabetes mellitus? (British Journal of Diabetes & Vascular Disease 2010 10: 66) DOI: 10.1177/1474651409357035

86. [jasn.asnjournals] Singh, A., Satchell, S. C., Neal, C. R., McKenzie E A., Tooke, J E., and Mathieson P. W., Glomerular Endothelial Glycocalyx constitutes a Barrier to Protein Permeability, (J Am Soc Nephrol 18: 2885-2893, 2007.) DOI: 10.1681/ASN.2007010119) Full text

87. [nutritionj.com] Ramberg, J. E., Nelson, E. D., Sinnott, R. A., Immunomodulatory dietary polysaccharides: a systematic review of the literature, (Nutrition Journal 2010, 9:54) DOI:10.1186/1475-2891-9-54

89. [ncbi.nlm.nih.] Reitsma, S.,,et al The Endothelial glycocalyx: composition, functions, and visualization, (Pflugers Arch – Eur J Physiol (2007) 454:345-359) DOI 10.1007/s00424-007-0212-8

90. [ircres.ahajournals] Barakat, A. I., Dragging Along; the Glycocalyx and Vascular Endothelial Cell Mechanotransduction, (Circulation Research. 2008;102:747.748) 2008 American Heart Assoc.

Addition – more recent research has been examining how intracellular structures tend to stay semi-fluid or aggregate into separate droplets like water and oil will separate into layers in some types of salad dressings. Several chronic illnesses and neurodegenerative disorders seem to involve protein clumping and intracellular fluid changes. https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-018-03070-2?utm_source=twt_nnc&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=naturenews&sf204568751=1

Magnesium and calcium both are involved in stabilizing or disrupting membrane structure in cell walls or cellular structures. Increasing concentrations of either cause the clumping/disrupting effects but the effect occurs at lower concentrations of calcium then magnesium. https://www.biorxiv.org/content/biorxiv/early/2018/10/24/453019.full.pdf

During normal health more calcium is available in extracellular fluid and more magnesium is in the intracellular fluid. Both are kept within very narrow ranges. Back stock, extra supplies, are carried in a non-electrically active way on protein or phospholipid transport molecules. When less protein or phospholipid is available then less magnesium is available within the cell in the inactive form which is normally released if needed in case of traumatic injury or other issues cause a need for more of the electrically active mineral. It is used to control flow of other minerals and molecules across cell membranes. See Magnesium in the Central Nervous System for more information. https://www.adelaide.edu.au/press/titles/magnesium/

Summary points based on the textbook regarding magnesium sources, symptoms of deficiencies and food sources of phosphonutrients: https://transcendingsquare.com/2018/07/20/to-have-optimal-magnesium-needs-protein-and-phospholipids-too/

More about magnesium and phospholipid bilayers https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2754194/

Ionic plasma/electrical fields are being experimentally tested to help wound healing in diabetics. Activation of Nrf2 pathways and rebalancing oxidative stress chemicals seems to be involved. The treatment also helps stabilize the cellular matrix/ the glycocalx layer of the healing wound.
Redox for Repair: Cold Physical Plasmas and Nrf2 Signaling Promoting Wound Healing https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3921/7/10/146/htm