Learning and memory in humans can be enhanced by increasing the levels of magnesium in the brain, according to the results of a 2009 study performed on rats. The study demonstrated that elevating brain magnesium led to significant improvements in memory function and learning ability, particularly in older rats – those whose memory and learning capabilities were already compromised by the natural process of ageing.
There are many health benefits to magnesium, some of which you can discover in the embedded PDF.
While the study implied that only a specific, patented type of magnesium was able to achieve these results, author of The Magnesium Miracle Dr. Carolyn Dean believes that to be a significant exaggeration. Dr. Carolyn Dean draws on years of experience as both a medical doctor and naturopath to state on her blog that all magnesium works at the neuron level.
This means that individuals do not need to rely on the specific MgT compound used in the study to be able to see comparable results. Dr. Dean explains that all magnesium can cross the BBB (blood-brain barrier) and emphasizes the importance of magnesium for good brain health.
In the short video attachment, you can learn more about the blood-brain barrier.
Improving Memory Function with Magnesium
The 2009 study showed that introducing MgT supplements to rats increased the plasticity and density of the synapses in the area of the brain that plays a vital role in both long-term memory and spatial navigation, the hippocampus. These improvements in synapses could be seen in rats of all ages. Another aspect of the experiment, which explored memory recall, found that under partial information conditions, the magnesium supplement boosted recall among older rats, but in young rats it had no noticeable effect. This implies that magnesium can help to slow down the decline in memory loss that occurs naturally as we age. Although the study was performed on rats, the implications for humans are significant according to the researchers.
Improved Learning Abilities
Researchers in the study took a supplemented group of rats and a non-supplemented control group and looked at their ability to swim, and to discover the location of a submerged platform they could rest on. The results showed that rats of all ages learned faster in the supplemented group than in the control group. After 24 hours, the supplemented rats were able to remember the location of the submerged platform. The control group, however, had forgotten and had to search randomly through the maze once more. This resulted in the control group taking more than twice as long to find the platform as the group that had been supplemented with MgT.
Magnesium for Preventing Alzheimer’s
Other studies have identified decreased levels of magnesium as a contributing factor to the onset of Alzheimer’s disease. It has been proven that further decline of cognitive function in Alzheimer’s patients can be prevented when adequate levels of magnesium are restored to the brain. One study, which involved a magnesium supplement treatment over 17 months, found that amyloid plaque accumulation was reduced in the prefrontal cortex by 36% and in the hippocampus by 35.8%. Some researchers today are now exploring whether magnesium therapy can be used to reverse development of the disease.
There are various lifestyle changes that have been shown to help prevent the onset or development of Alzheimer’s. You can find an overview of these in the infographic attachment to this post.