Magnesium Supplements for Patients with Atrial Fibrillation

Atrial fibrillation can be defined as a medical condition marked by unusually fast and irregular heartbeats. Healthy individuals have resting heart rates ranging between 60 and 100 beats per minute. However, the ones with atrial fibrillation have heart rates of over 140 beats per minute. This condition can lead to life threatening symptoms like severe breathing difficulties and dizziness.

Patients with atrial fibrillation are at higher risk of experiencing heart attacks compared to the ones not affected by the condition. There are medications that are administered for regulating the heartbeat and normalizing the heart rhythm in patients with atrial fibrillation. Magnesium supplements are also often recommended as a secondary treatment option for this heart disorder. However, there are very few evidences supporting this prowess of magnesium supplements. So, anyone wishing to use magnesium supplements for managing atrial fibrillation must consult his doctor. Magnesium can be also obtained from several food sources. Examples of some food items rich in this mineral include brown rice, yogurt, lentils, spinach, potatoes, nuts and soybeans.

Magnesium is an extremely essential mineral of human body. It plays vital roles in bodily functions like immunity system development, blood pressure regulation and metabolism of protein. It has been found that magnesium deficiency leads to abnormal increase in our heart rhythm; this puts us at higher risk of having heart attacks. If the deficiency of the mineral can be compensated, the heart rate can be brought back to normal; therefore, having magnesium supplements helps in preventing or curing atrial fibrillation.

We have mentioned before that there’s lack of clinical researches evaluating effects of oral intake of magnesium supplements by atrial fibrillation patients. However, a medical study conducted in the year 2006 has revealed that magnesium’s intravenous administration can help in preventing atrial fibrillation in patients undergoing cardiac surgeries.