According to the American Heart Association, aortic stenosis is one of the most common and severe heart valve problems. About 29 percent of people 65 years and older have it, and 2 percent to 9 percent of those over 75 have a severe case.
With aortic stenosis, the valve becomes stiff, and the left ventricle can’t pump enough blood out of the heart and into the aorta. The heart has to work harder to pump enough for the body to receive a sufficient supply of oxygen-rich blood. As the heart works harder, the muscle becomes stretched and can no longer contract properly, eventually leading to heart failure.
Medical authorities claim that a high calcium intake can prevent the widespread incidence of osteoporosis and tooth decay in Western countries. However, Asian and African populations with a low intake (about 300 mg) of calcium daily have very little osteoporosis. Bantu women with an intake of 200 to 300 mg of calcium daily have the lowest incidence of osteoporosis globally.[i]
In Western countries with a high intake of dairy products, the average calcium intake is about 1,000 mg. With a low magnesium intake, calcium moves out of the bones to increase tissue levels, while a high magnesium intake causes calcium to move from the tissues into the bones. Thus, high magnesium levels lead to bone mineralization. Magnesium is essential for proper calcium absorption and is an important mineral in the bone matrix.
Dr. Karen Kubena, associate professor of nutrition at Texas A&M University, says, “Let’s say you have just enough magnesium and too much calcium in your blood. If calcium is excreted, the magnesium goes with it. All of a sudden, you could be low in magnesium,” says Dr. Kubena.[ii]
“Bones average about 1% phosphate of magnesium and. teeth about 1% phosphate of magnesium. Elephant tusks contain 2% phosphate of magnesium, and billiard balls made from these are almost indestructible. The teeth of carnivorous animals contain nearly 5% phosphate of magnesium. Thus, they can crush and grind the bones of their prey without difficulty,” wrote Otto Carque (1933) in Vital Facts About Foods.
William R. Quesnell, author of Minerals: The Essential Link to Health, said, “Most people have come to believe nutrition is divisible and that a single substance will maintain vibrant health. The touting of calcium for the degenerative disease osteoporosis provides an excellent example. Every day, the media, acting as a proxy for the milk lobby, sells calcium as a magic bullet. Has it worked? It has definitely worked for milk sales; however, for American health, it has been a disaster. When you load up your system with excess calcium, you shut down magnesium’s ability to activate thyrocalcitonin, a hormone that under normal circumstances would send calcium to your bones.”
Cardiac CT showing calcified plaques.
Dr. Carolyn Dean makes this clear when she says in her book The Magnesium Miracle, “To understand how you can create a calcium/magnesium imbalance in your own body, try this experiment in your kitchen. Crush a calcium pill and see how much dissolves in 1 oz of water. Then, crush a magnesium pill and slowly stir it into the calcium water.
When you introduce magnesium, the remaining calcium dissolves; it becomes more water-soluble. The same thing happens in your bloodstream, heart, brain, kidneys, and all the tissues in your body. If you don’t have enough magnesium to help keep calcium dissolved, you may end up with calcium-excess muscle spasms, fibromyalgia, hardening of the arteries, and even dental cavities. Another scenario plays out in the kidneys. If there is too much calcium in the kidneys and insufficient magnesium to dissolve it, you can get kidney stones.”
Dr. H. Ray Evers writes, “The power plant of the human cell is called the “mitochondrion.” The mitochondrion is what generates energy for the cell to use. What everyone refers to as “energy” is derived from the oxidative reduction of the cellular respiration. This is done through the mitochondria. However, the problem arises when the cell is low in magnesium relative to calcium. Adenosine triphosphate, the cell’s energy currency, is magnesium-dependent. This means it is obvious that the calcium pump at the cell membrane is also magnesium-dependent. The cellular calcium pump slows down without enough “biologically available” magnesium. Thus, a vicious cycle is established.
The low levels of available magnesium inhibit the generation of energy, and the low levels of energy inhibit the calcium pump. The end result? The mitochondrion, the powerhouse of the cell and the entire body becomes calcified. Every function of your body can be inhibited when the mitochondria calcify. It’s like going through life with the emergency brakes on. Calcium is the brake. Magnesium is the accelerator. To be in optimal health, there must be a balance between the two.”
The higher the protein you consumer the more magnesium is needed.
When large amounts of calcium are consumed, you need more magnesium.
A diet which is high in calcium increases the body’s need for magnesium.
Dr. H. Ray Evers
Coronary artery calcification is common and, when severe, is significantly associated with ischemic cardiovascular disease in adult end-stage renal disease patients. The amount of calcium in the coronary arteries reliably predicts heart attack risk and is measured by one’s calcium score. UCLA cardiologist Dr. Matt Budoff, a long-time champion of the Coronary Calcium Scan says, “The total amount of coronary calcium (Agatston score) predicts coronary disease events beyond standard risk factors.” The Coronary Calcium Score is a precise quantitative tool for measuring and tracking heart disease risk. It is more valuable and accurate than other traditional markers.
The most common cause of death in dialysis patients is cardiovascular disease. This is due in part to the presence of excess vascular calcification, particularly in the form of extensive coronary artery calcification, which can be observed even in very young dialysis patients. The presence of coronary artery calcification in the dialysis population appears to correlate in part with the ingested quantity of calcium-containing oral phosphate binders.
According to Dr. Sarah Mayhill, Calcium and magnesium compete for absorption, so too much calcium in the diet will block magnesium absorption. Our physiological requirement for calcium to magnesium is about 2:1. In dairy products, the ratio is 10:1. So, consuming many dairy products will induce a magnesium deficiency.”