People with high blood pressure, angina, or arrhythmia (irregular heartbeat) are sometimes prescribed a drug known as a calcium channel blocker (CCB).
CCBs are one of the most widely used drugs in cardiovascular medicine, they reduce blood pressure through their action on smooth muscle cells.
Smooth muscles, which are found in blood vessels, the gastrointestinal tract, and the bladder, provide slower rhythmic involuntary contractions. The image below shows a cross section of a blood vessel. Showing the location of the smooth muscle within the wall of the blood vessel, and the lumen, which is the passageway through which the blood flows.
When smooth muscle contracts the internal diameter of the lumen gets smaller. This is a necessary biological function to regulate circulation. The smooth muscle contraction helps to maintain the correct amount of pressure within the blood vessels.
The contraction of smooth muscle is dependent upon calcium, which enters a smooth muscle cell and interacts with contractile proteins to cause muscle contraction.
CCBs target this mechanism. As their name suggests they block calcium in order to prevent smooth muscles from contracting. In people who have high blood pressure this may be useful. However, all drugs have potential short and long term adverse effects. And many people are not aware that there is a better alternative - a common nutrient that does exactly the same thing - magnesium.
Magnesium is a natural calcium channel blocker.
Magnesium, in general, counters the actions of calcium. Magnesium and calcium are antagonistic and hence balance each other. Calcium can be thought of as a stimulator, while magnesium has a calming or relaxing effect. Studies going back almost a century have shown the blood pressure lowering effects of magnesium. And lower dietary intake of magnesium has been linked with higher blood pressure.
However, the circulation-improving actions of magnesium are not limited to its relaxation of smooth muscle. Magnesium has also been shown, through various mechanisms, to improve the function of the endothelium - the cells that form the lining of blood vessels. Magnesium also plays a central role in the production of cellular energy - important for all of the body’s functions including the prevention of heart failure. And magnesium can also fix some arrhythmias.
The term arrhythmia refers to any problem with the rate or rhythm of the heartbeat. It can be too fast, too slow, or with a fluctuating rhythm. Most arrhythmias are harmless, but some can be very serious. During an arrhythmia the heart might not be able to pump enough blood around the body. Which can lead to damage to the brain, heart, and any other organs and systems that are deprived of blood and oxygen.
Arrhythmias are related to the electrical activity of the heart and the correct balance of calcium and magnesium in the heart has a stabilising effect on this electrical activity. A heartbeat is a single cycle in which the heart’s chambers relax and contract to pump blood. The heartbeat is regulated by electrical signals, starting with the sinus node which corresponds to the heart rate (number of beats per minute). The signal from the sinus node spreads to the AV node, where it slows to allow the ventricles (lower chambers of the heart) to fill with blood. The signal then continues to the cells within the wall of the ventricles, which causes the ventricles to contract and pump blood around the body. This is thought to be the reason why magnesium has been shown to be effective in treating many different forms of arrhythmia.
The importance of magnesium in regulating the electrical function of the heartbeat is illustrated by the fact that Dr. Carolyn Dean, who has been researching magnesium for about 20 years, was awarded a prize by the Heart Rhythm Society of the United Kingdom.
In addition to all of this, magnesium plays an important role in glucose and insulin metabolism - by reducing insulin resistance and helping glucose to enter into cells. People who have problems regulating blood glucose levels—in particular, people with type 2 diabetes or the metabolic syndrome—have consistently been found to have lower levels of magnesium.
In one study, magnesium levels of people with metabolic syndrome were compared with those of healthy people. Of the 192 people with metabolic syndrome, 126 had low levels of magnesium in the blood, compared with just 19 of the 384 healthy people.
Magnesium is one of the most important factors where nutrition and heart health are concerned. Unfortunately, magnesium deficiency is currently overlooked by most doctors and cardiologists. Magnesium is the eleventh most abundant element in the human body, Although it accounts for less than 0.1 percent of the body’s mass, it is essential for hundreds of life-sustaining biochemical processes.
This is just one example of nutrition and natural medicine being neglected in favour of drug medicine.