There’s nothing worse than lying down in your cozy bed anticipating some much needed shut-eye after a busy day, and low and behold you’re up for hours, tossing and turning.  Grrrrr!  It’s one thing for this to happen every now and again, but what if this happens to you night after night?  Not sleeping is a huge problem for some.  Do not fret. Here are some suggestions to consider.  I urge you to investigate each one to see what might be right for you.   

--Calms Forte:  For sleeplessness, take 1 to 3 tablets with water ½-1 hour before sleeping.  Do not drink or eat anything fifteen minutes before and after taking the tablets.  Temporarily relieves the symptoms of simple nervous tension and sleeplessness.  Here is great information about this Hyland’s product: http://www.hylands.com/products/calmsforte.php

--Ashwagandha:  2 capsules in morning and 2 capsules at night, every day.  Always take one before bed.  Effective for improving sleep, and decreasing and moderating stress.  It works in...

Q: I wanted to respond to one of the email newsletters I received from you back in September.  First of all, I love the newsletters, and I think you are doing great work – thank you!

In your newsletter, you advocated for the supplementation of Vit D – an excellent recommendation, since we are all pretty much deficient in this vitamin.  However, you also recommended getting a blood test done to confirm whether levels of Vit D fall within normal limits.  This concerns me, as I know for a fact that blood labs alone are not reliable…for example, blood work may show Vit D levels (or anything else for that matter) to be within normal limits, when in fact the source of the problem may be the absorption of available Vitamin D. 

The best indicator of a deficiency, therefore, is not a blood test…but how the patient actually feels, and if they are showing signs and symptoms of a deficiency.  This is the only reliable indicator, and this fact should be stressed.   To say that a person should rely o...

If you are experiencing headaches, high blood pressure, stress, muscle spasms and fatigue, magnesium insufficiency may be a factor.  Magnesium is crucial to hundreds of biochemical processes in your body, and the typical “Western” diet does not provide adequate magnesium.   There is no standard clinical test to determine magnesium levels; serum levels of magnesium in the blood may be low even when levels are sufficient.  This is because about 98% of magnesium in the body is being used in intracellular functions, where it can’t be measured through blood tests.

If you suspect that your magnesium levels might be low, however, they most likely are.  The highly processed and profit-driven “Occidental” diet does not offer much in the way of bioavailable magnesium, and other factors such as ingestion of coffee and alcohol rob your body of magnesium and other valuable nutrients.  Low magnesium levels are often asymptomatic and go unnoticed.  More severe clinical deficiencies of magnesium have ...

Q. Loved your tweets on magnesium deficiency! Great job. Are there certain signs to look for to determine if you are magnesium deficient?

A. Hi there -

Glad to hear that you are getting benefit from our tweets ;)

There are definitely signs out there which alert you to magnesium deficiency.

I will give the ones off the top of my head first and then I will provide you a useful resource to make sure I don't forget any.

Signs of magnesium deficiency are:

• trouble going to sleep at night
• muscle spasms
• tightness in the muscles after workouts
• stools that look like rabbit pellets instead of bananas
• migraines
• headaches
• irregular heart beats
• stress
• high blood pressure

Magnesium is utilized by over 300 biochemical reactions in our body. So, even if you suspect that you are deficient, you most likely are.

Magnesium deficiency is extremely common and I highly recommend one take a daily supplement of magnesium.

Magnesium according to World's Healthiest Foods:

"The metabolic role of magnesium is so diverse that it is ...

What is Magnesium Stearate?

Depends on who you ask. To some magnesium stearate is nothing. To some it is everything.

I will let you decide.

But not without scientific facts being presented. Let's get started.

I know how you got here. The same way as we all do.

Did you look at the ingredients panel on your supplement and see that it contained all the nutrients you wanted?

The sales rep at the local store said it was the right product for you because of those nutrients. You were sold.

A few weeks later, you feel no change. No improvements. You feel ripped off and instead of the hassle of going back to the store, you look at the ingredients panel again.

You see the ingredients panel and given the research you've done in the last couple weeks on the nutrient, you also feel that it is the right product for you.

Then, wait, what is that? There is another panel and it is called:

Other Ingredients.

That's odd.

You see: Magnesium stearate.

"What is that? Magnesium is good, right? But I don't know what ste...

Q: I was reading about the Tri-Magnesium online and it makes sense to me why this would be a good product to try. However,  I also read that magnesium should be coupled with calcium in a 2:1 ratio in order to have maximum magnesium absorption.  I was wondering about your thoughts on that as I don't believe this product has calcium.

A: Calcium and magnesium do have a synergistic relationship. However, Calcium is not needed in order for a high quality magnesium to be absorbed.

The reason why calcium is added along with magnesium for most supplements is that magnesium can push out calcium. This is why there is twice as much calcium as there is magnesium in common Ca:Mg 2:1 formulas. If one gets ample calcium from their diet, calcium supplementation is not needed.

Magnesium is one of the most common nutrient deficiencies known, right there with Vitamin D3. Thus, taking added calcium in a magnesium supplement is not needed for many individuals.

For those needing calcium and magnesium, then I...