Magnesium supplementation significantly increases HDL-cholesterol among people with prediabetes

The study further stated that supplementation with magnesium oxide at 250 mg/day did not improve cardiometabolic markers.

Lifestyle and human behavior nowadays have profoundly changed. People are overeating, living longer, and inactive, increasing the rates of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and obesity. T2DM is considered a global burden and is the leading cause of blindness, kidney failure, and nontraumatic leg amputations, as well as the foremost cause of heart attacks and strokes.

Prediabetes is the first stage of type 2 diabetes in which blood sugar levels are higher than usual but not yet at the level of diabetes. Early detection and effective treatment of prediabetes can change the natural history of diabetes and delay or prevent complications. Magnesium plays a critical role in many different biochemical reactions. It helps maintain various vital functions, including neuromuscular conduction, glucose regulation, myocardial electrical activity, muscle contraction, and blood pressure.

Against the above background, Rezvan Salehidoost, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran, and colleagues investigated magnesium's supplementation effect on insulin resistance and cardiovascular markers in prediabetes patients.

The researchers conducted a 12-week double-blind, placebo-controlled randomized clinical trial at Isfahan Endocrine and Metabolism Research Center, Iran. The study compared the effects of magnesium oxide 250 mg/day to a placebo in people with prediabetes (n = 86) on blood pressure, anthropometric indices, insulin, fasting glucose, C-reactive protein, HOMA-IR index, uric acid, and lipid profile. Both groups had comparable distributions of biochemical and anthropometric variables at baseline.

The study led to the following findings:

• Patients who received magnesium supplementation had significantly higher HDL-cholesterol levels versus the placebo group at the study's end (49.7 ± 10.9 vs. 43.6 ± 7.2 mg/dL).
• The mean changes in HOMA-IR index, LDL-cholesterol, total cholesterol, uric acid, triglyceride, C-reactive protein levels, blood pressure, and anthropometric indices in supplemented and placebo groups did not vary remarkably.

Findings from the randomized controlled trial (RCT) involving prediabetes patients showed that magnesium supplementation of 250 mg daily for 12 weeks increased HDL-cholesterol. However, the supplementation did not impact insulin and fasting plasma glucose levels, HOMA-IR index, and HbA1c, as well as the levels of uric acid and CRP.

"Considering possible limitations concerning magnesium formulation, limited sample size, and duration of therapy, one should be cautious before drawing any definitive conclusions," the researchers wrote in their study. "Then, further studies using different magnesium doses and extended intervention periods would be the next step for assessing the effects of magnesium on cardiometabolic markers."

Reference:

Salehidoost, R., Taghipour Boroujeni, G., Feizi, A. et al. Effect of oral magnesium supplement on cardiometabolic markers in people with prediabetes: a double blind randomized controlled clinical trial. Sci Rep 12, 18209 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-022-20277-6