Magnesium Affects Diabetes Risk in Children

Category: Children's Health , Conditions of the Endocrine System , Dietary Supplements

Childhood obesity, currently at epidemic proportions in the US, is a leading cause of pediatric type 2 diabetes. Now research reports that magnesium deficiency in obese children is associated with an increased risk of diabetes.

The study, published in Diabetes Care (2005, vol. 28), investigated whether obese children have low levels of magnesium and its association with insulin resistance and diabetes. Researchers from the University of Virginia and other centers in Virginia and New York measured serum magnesium levels in 24 obese, non-diabetic children between the ages of eight to seventeen and 24 similarly-matched lean children. The researchers measured the participants' magnesium intake with a detailed questionnaire on food-frequency, indexes of insulin sensitivity, and body composition by air displacement plethysmography.

Researchers found that serum magnesium levels were significantly lower in obese children compared with the lean children. Dietary patterns showed that obese children had a lower dietary magnesium intake compared with the lean children. Findings also revealed that magnesium levels were inversely associated with insulin resistance and obesity.

The study authors conclude that, "magnesium supplementation or increased intake of magnesium-rich foods may be an important tool in the prevention of type 2 diabetes in obese children."

Posted by Kristopher Foster on April 1, 2014 11:00 AM