Calcification:The Phosphate Theoryof Aging and Disease

By Mark Mayerwww.calcificationbook.com

Copyright ©2012 by Mark Mayer. ISBN: 978-1492926962. All rights reserved. Secondedition: Version 2.0

No part of this book may be reproduced in anyform without written permission from theauthor, except for the inclusion of briefquotations.

Disclaimer

Notice: The information presented here is notintended as a substitute for the advice and/ormedical care of the reader's physician. Anydiet or lifestyle regimen should be undertakenunder the direct supervision of the reader'sphysician. The reader should regularly consultwith a physician in matters relating to his orher health, and especially with regard tosymptoms that may require diagnosis. Pleaseconsult a medical or health professional if youhave any questions about your health. Forlegal reasons, I must include theaforementioned disclaimer. But in reality mostof the recommendations in this book involvesimple dietary and lifestyle changes that areeasy to follow.

Contents

How to use this book........................................................... 4Preface................................................................................. 5Introduction......................................................................... 7Phosphates! Phosphates! Everywhere! ............................. 20Magnesium to the rescue .................................................. 26

High blood pressure and magnesium............................ 28The “K” factor................................................................... 32Oxalic acid (oxalates) ....................................................... 45Calcium scoring: What you need to know........................ 50Epilogue ............................................................................ 51Resources .......................................................................... 59Appendix 1 mineral chelates............................................. 59Appendix 2 How fluoride got approved ........................... 60Appendix 3: Alternative sweeteners ................................. 72Appendix 4 probiotics & prebiotics.................................. 77

How to use this book

Please visit the author’s website forimportant updates and other free articles. Theaddress is: http://www.calcificationbook.com.Because new information is constantlybecoming available, I recommend checkingthis website every so often. You will also finddirect links to the websites listed in thisbook.

Most technical terms are included in theglossary at the end of this book (See the tableof contents for the location of this glossary).

Preface

Calcification kills! And furthermore, itcan accelerate signs of aging. In a recentJohn Hopkins study, it was determined thatthose with the highest level of calciumdeposits in their arteries, had the highestincidence of heart attacks. One of the studyauthors Michael Blaha, M.D., stated thefollowing: We found that the risk of a heartattack was eight times greater among peopleunder age 45 who had high levels of calciumin their coronary arteries compared withpatients over age 75 whose vessels did notcontain calcium,” says Michael Blaha, M.D.,one of the study authors from The JohnsHopkins Heart and Vascular Institute.

The focus of my book is phosphate foodadditives and their relation to calcification, withadditional chapters on vitamin K2 and otherfactors related to calcification. The phosphatetheory of aging and disease has not gottenmuch attention, but has recently been thesubject of a very impressive Harvard study.The study was conducted by M. ShawkatRazzaque, M.D., Ph.D., from the Department

of Medicine, Infection and Immunity at theHarvard School of Dental Medicine.Razzaque’s study concluded that “High levelsof Phosphates can accelerate signs of Aging.”You can see this study for yourself by going toany search engine and typing in the words“phosphates + the author’s name: ShawkatRazzaque.”

As impressive as this study is, it isinsignificant compared to the results that youcan actually see with your own two eyes:Through a process called calcium scoring, it ispossible to have your calcium depositsquantified into numbers. And mostimportantly, you can actually see thosenumbers go down. Calcium scoring is acontroversial technique that uses a CTscanner to measure the amount of calciumdeposits in your arteries. Normally, I wouldhesitate to recommend the casual use ofthese tests because they do subject your bodyto some radiation, but the amount of radiationused is minimal. Later in this book, I will tellyou about a dietary supplement calledGlisodin that has been shown in crediblestudies to protect your body from radiation.

Introduction

Welcome to the second edition of mybook. This edition represents a major revisionto my last edition. For this edition I haverewritten most of the chapters with updatedinformation. But one thing remains the same:And that is the basic regimen presented in thefirst edition of my book. You have probablyheard the old saying: “if it aint broke, don’t fixit.” Well, the regimen works so well, that I seeno reason to change anything. I have onlyadded information. In fact, the biggest editionto my book is the information on “calciumscoring.” This is a technique that will enableyou to physically see your improvement. Oneof the biggest criticisms that I received in thefirst edition of my book, was that it was poorlyreferenced. Well folks, I am now offering myreaders the best reference that you can get,and that is the proof you can see with yourown two eyes. Through the use of calciumscoring, you will now be able to physically seeyour improvement. I can quote you study afterstudy, but it does not mean a thing, as youwere not there, and therefore you have noway of knowing if these were legitimatestudies. Unfortunately, many studies aretainted by people who have a huge financial

interest. Apparently, there are severalcompanies out there who are selling veryexpensive treatments to combat calcifications.Even worse, these companies are not abovethe use of corporate sabotage. One of thebiggest problems I have faced is mycompetition writing negative reviews about mybook. For example, I recently received anegative review from someone who callsherself “Juliane.” This reviewer specificallymentions “NanobacTX” as an effectivetreatment to reverse calcifications.NanobacTX was originally marketed as atreatment for Nanobacteria. If you want toknow the truth about Nanobacteria, then Irecommend going to Sciam.com anddownloading the January 2010 issue ofScientific American. Look for an articleentitled: “The truth about Nanobacteria.” Thisarticle clearly states that Nanobacteria are nota cause of calcification. Incidentally,NanobacTX currently sells for $199.00 for aone month supply. This is an improvement, asit used to sell for $295.00 per month. Contrastthat with my regimen, which cost as little as$5.00 a month and you can see why theywant to dissuade you from buying my book.Just to be clear, it is not the province of thisbook to debate the effectiveness of anytreatment regimen that my competitors haveto offer. I am only saying that my regimen is

very effective – AT A FRACTION OF THECOST! Actually that is an understatement, asmy regimen is currently about 40 timescheaper than what my competitors charge.Incidentally, I make no profit from the regimenitself. All I make is a small commission fromthe sale of my book, which amounts to next tonothing, as my competition has succeeded inruining my sales by publishing negativereviews about my book. So here is what Ipropose to you: Read my book and try thesimple, safe, and most importantly,“inexpensive” regimen outlined in my book. Iwant you to have the calcium scoring donebefore and after the regimen. In fact, thecalcium scoring is the most expensive part ofthe regimen. And again, I don’t make anymoney from the calcium scoring. I make just asmall profit from the sale of my book and if mycompetition continues to publish negativereviews about my book, I will retaliate byconverting my book into an E-book and givingit away for free. And we will all lose money. Iactually wrote this book to help people. Theonly reason I charge money for it, is that Ihave living expenses to pay for. I wouldn’t putanything past my competition, includingmurder. So I have put a clause in my willstating in the event of my untimely death, thatmy book is to be given away as a free E-book.

My competition will do and say anythingto prevent you from getting your hands on theinformation in this book. They have made allkinds of unfounded criticisms, but so farnobody has shown credible evidence that theregimen does not work. I am showing youevidence that you can see with your own twoeyes that it works. Through the use of calciumscoring, you can actually see the calciumplaque in your arteries get reduced. Mycompetition will tell you that I am uneducatedand my book is a waste of money; they willprobably tell you that I am the anti-christ. Infact, that is exactly what Juliane said in herlast review of my book, minus the part aboutme being the anti-christ of course. But allkidding aside, if there is one thing you canlearn from my book, it is to judge by“performance and results.” That is the why Iam encouraging my reader’s to have theircalcium scores checked. That way they cansee with their own two eyes the results theycan get. If you don’t understand thisphilosophy, then please put down my bookand go to my competition, and I am sure theywill be happy to sink their fangs into yourwallet and drain it of cash. Yes folks, vampiresdo exist, but not the blood sucking variety thatyou see in the movies. In the real worldvampires are after your money. They want toget into your bank account and take out as

much money as they can. Of course thiswould be illegal and they could go to jail ifcaught, so these people find legal ways to getinto your money. They may publish phonystudies and even hire shills to claim that theirproduct has helped them. Be very leery of anystudy published by a party who has a financialinterest in that product. BELIEVE IN WHATYOU CAN SEE WITH YOUR OWN TWOEYES! That is why I like calcium scoring,because my readers can see the results withtheir own two eyes. I can quote study afterstudy, but you have no way of actuallyknowing if such studies are legitimate, as youwere not there. Big business wants to makemoney, and they will do anything to convinceyou to buy their products. And you DON’Talways get what you pay for. The regimenoutlined in my book costs next to nothingcompared to what my competition charges.And it works! But don’t take my word for it, trythe regimen and have your calcium scorechecked before and after, and chances arethat you will be very pleasantly surprised bythe results.

If you have a lot of money and don’tmind wasting it, then by all means, go to mycompetition, and I am sure they will be happyto have another cash cow to milk for money.But if you are like most people and work hardfor a living then you will probably want to at

least give my regimen a try. The basicregimen is dirt cheap. The only expensive partis the cost of calcium scoring, which is usuallynot covered by insurance. But if you can’tafford one CT scan, then you will never beable to afford the outrageous prices that mycompetition charges for their regimen, which Idoubt works any better than the simpleinexpensive regimen that you will find in mybook. Just to be clear, I am not saying that mycompetition’s expensive remedy does notwork. It may very well work just as well asmine works. I am only saying that theirremedy is extremely expensive compared tomine. You may have heard the old saying thatyou “get what you pay for.” Well, I say try myregimen. It really works. But again, don’t takemy word for it. Try it! Have your calcium scorechecked before and after. See for yourself. Ifyou don’t see results in six months, then sendme an email, as you may be doing somethingwrong. I know the regimen works because ofthe feedback I get from the people whoactually use the regimen. That is, they saytheir calcium score got lower. Most of thereviews of my book were actually positive; thatis, from the people who actually used theregimen. I will admit that the first edition of mybook was poorly written, but nevertheless, theinformation was very good. I don’t mind whenpeople call me a lousy writer, but when people

call me a lousy researcher, then I feel hurt.Heart disease is the number one killer in mostof the world, so it is sad that people wouldresort to posting negative reviews about abook that contains information that canprevent our number one killer. My competitiononly cares about money. Their remedy mayvery well work, but the point is that it isextremely expensive.

My competition has gone to greatlengths to undermine my credibility. They saythings like “he’s not a doctor.” Well folks, that’scorrect, I’m not a doctor. That’s mostlybecause my own health problems precludedme from going to medical school. I often callmyself a nutritionist. According to mostdictionaries, a nutritionist is one who studiesnutrition. I have spent over 25 years studyingnutrition and when my eyes got so bad that Icould no longer read any more, I had to usetext to speech software to read. Unfortunately,they did not have E-books back then, so I hadto invent the technology myself by convertingphysical books into E-books, so that I can usethem with my text to speech engine. Backthen they did not have duplex scannersavailable at any reasonable price, so I had todo things the hard way, by scanning page bypage. Now I have better equipment which hasenabled me put together a massive databaseof health information. And all my competition

can say is that he is not a doctor. I had toovercome crippling pain in my eyes to writethis book and it is sad that there are people inthis world who care more about profit thananything else.

One really nasty reviewer who callshimself Mr. Tomlin wrote not one but twonegative reviews of my book. In both reviewshe had nothing substantial to say. That is, hedid not say what was wrong with my book. Allhe basically said was my book sucked andthen recommended another book entitled: TheCalcium Bomb by Douglas Mulhall. This is thebook written by people who are affiliated withmy competition. The book claims that most ofour calcifications are caused by nanobacteria.If you want to know the truth aboutnanobacteria then I recommend going toSciam.com and downloading the January2010 issue of Scientific American. Look for anarticle entitled: “The truth about Nanobacteria.The company (Nanobiotech) actually sold testkits to detect the presence of nanobacteria.According to the article in Scientific American,the tests were merely detecting a commonblood protein called albumin. Of course,everyone who took the test would test positivefor nanobacteria infection and requirespending a fortune for nanobiotech’sexpensive remedy. Now I am not calling mycompetition a fraud. I am just saying “you be

the judge.” Read their book, (the CalciumBomb). Read it from cover to cover and thenbe sure to go to Sciam.com and download theJanuary 2010 issue of Scientific American.Look for an article entitled: “The truth aboutNanobacteria. And YOU be the judge! Unlikemy competition, who has tried voraciously todissuade people from reading my book, I wantyou to read my competition’s book. I want youto see just how full of crap these people are.

When this Juliane wrote her review ofmy book, she said that “calcification was anactive mediated response.” So what does thatmean? It means nothing! It is gobbledegook.Just to be sure, I asked a physician friend ofmine and he agreed. The use of suchgobbledegook is a common ploy of scamartists. One of the worst displays ofgobbledegook came from a book I read calledthe The Calcium Factor by Robert barefoot.Robert barefoot was the guy who started thecoral calcium craze in the 90’s. If you want toknow the truth about coral calcium, then Irecommend that you go to quackwatch.org(That’s “org” not “com”) and search their sitefor either “Robert barefoot” or “coral calcium,”and you will see that I am not the only onewho thinks that coral calcium is a scam. Oneof the most vociferous opponents of coralcalcium is Dr. Michael T. Murray, N.D. Dr.Murray clearly expressed his discontent with

coral calcium at his website:http://doctormurray.com. Search his site for anarticle entitled: Coral Calcium – The Answer to‘How do You Spell HYPE?’

I don’t mind some friendly competition,but this is not a game. Negative reviewscause me to lose money and damage myreputation. But the real losers are the peoplewho may be dissuaded from buying my book.Heart disease is the number one killer andmost people cannot afford the insane pricesthat my competition charges. Therefore, onecould rightfully consider the actions of mycompetitors to be homicidal.

The premise of my book focuses on thephosphate theory of calcification, withchapters on vitamin K-2 and other relevantissues. I wrote this book because there is noother book on the market like it. Some peoplehave compared my book to theaforementioned Calcium Bomb, but my bookis very different. Basically their book is allabout nanobacteria; while my book focuses onphosphates. Comparing the two books is likecomparing the movies The Muppets takeManhattan to Jason takes Manhattan. Bothmovies were very different, but shared onecommon denominator: that being that theyboth took place in Manhattan. Granted, I havenot had the “pleasure” of actually watchingJason takes Manhattan, but I think it is fair to

say that it is a far cry from The Muppets takeManhattan.

Anyway, the basic regimen involvesvery simple science. It has to do withphosphates. Most calcium deposits, such asthose afflicting the coronary arteries, arecomposed of a complex of calcium phosphate.The theory works like this: Phosphates, whichare added to most processed foods, are highlyacidic. When we ingest phosphates they willcreate an acid environment in our bodies.Fortunately, our bodies have a built in defensemechanism: that is we have alkaline mineralssuch as calcium to neutralize the acid. That iswhy calcium is the main ingredient in mostantacids. When excess phosphates areingested from dietary sources, our bodies willthen draw calcium out of our bones toneutralize the excess acid. Unfortunately, thecalcium is then deposited in our soft tissues inthe form of a calcium phosphate complex. It iswell known that people with kidney problemshave a hard time eliminating phosphates. Andthey are therefore advised to follow a lowphosphate diet. They are also prescribedphosphate binding agents. One suchphosphate binder is the simple mineralmagnesium. Taking just 100-200 milligrams ofmagnesium with every meal can safely bindphosphates and prevent them from bindingwith calcium, and subsequently being

deposited in your soft tissues. But you mustbe cautious about what form of magnesium touse as a supplement. Most forms ofmagnesium sold in health food stores are soldas magnesium oxide. This form is poorlyabsorbed and can cause diarrhea. It is similarto magnesium hydroxide, which is the activeingredient in the laxative “Milk of magnesia.”The human body was just not meant to absorbinorganic mineral salts such as magnesiumoxide. The best magnesium supplement is achelated form. A chelate is an organic acidthat binds to a mineral to help the body absorbit. This more closely resembles minerals asthey come from nature. Don’t confusechelated minerals with“chelation therapy.”That is an entirely different matter, and will bediscussed later in this book.

If you are an avid health enthusiast,then you have probably heard about thealkaline theory of disease. In fact, one authorby the name of Theodore A. Baroody went sofar as to entitle his book: Alkalize or Die. Youcan find his book on Amazon.com. But just tobe clear, most of the dangers of over acidityhave to do with calcification. It is not that ourbodies will acidify, it is that our bodies willdraw calcium out of our bones, which will thenbind up the phosphates and subsequentlydeposit the calcium phosphate complex in oursoft tissues.

Therefore, we have two methods to protectourselves: the first method is to avoidphosphates. The second method is to usemagnesium to bind phosphates and preventthem from causing harm. But first we must beable to identify what foods containphosphates. In the following chapters, I will tryto shed some light on this issue.

Phosphates! Phosphates! Everywhere!

The mineral phosphorus occurs in manyforms. When phosphorus occurs naturally infood, it is often in the form of a phospholipid.These forms of phosphorus are said to bemore alkaline and therefore less likely calcify.Furthermore, when phosphorus occurs innature, it is often accompanied by a specialenzyme called phosphatase. The primarypurpose of this enzyme is to break downphosphorus. Normally raw milk in its naturalstate contains the phosphatase enzyme.Apparently, Mother Nature considered thehigh level of phosphorus contained in milk tobe a danger. And in all her wisdom, shecreated the phosphatase enzyme tocounterbalance the high level of phosphorus.Unfortunately, when our milk is pasteurized,the high heat used in this process tends todestroy all the phosphatase enzymescontained in the milk. So while thepasteurization process can destroy harmfulmicrobes, thus preventing acute illness, thisprocess also can contribute to chronic healthproblems by destroying the phosphataseenzyme. This may account for some of thediscrepancies regarding the health benefits ofmilk. That is, many of milk’s alleged healthbenefits may have been attributed to thephosphatase containing raw milk. And

conversely, many of the alleged healthproblems associated with milk consumptionmay have to do with the pasteurizationprocess, and its resulting destruction of thephosphatase enzyme.

Soda pop is notorious for its highcontent of phosphoric acid. Hence the oldsaying: soft drinks cause soft bones (andconversely, hard arteries). But what fewpeople know is that almost all processedfoods contain phosphate additives. This is thebad form of phosphorus; the type that cancause soft tissue calcification.

Phosphates act as leavening agentsthat "fluff up" foods such as cakes, biscuits,breads and pancakes. Unlike yeast recipes,such as sourdough, phosphates have no tasteand can be used for a wide variety of bakingproducts, such as prepared doughs, pizzasand cake mixes. These include most lunchmeats, and most prepared foods. Milkproducts naturally contain a high level ofphosphorus, and most cheese products addadditional phosphates, thus adding "insult toinjury." Normally raw milk in its natural statecontains an alkaline enzyme calledphosphatase. As mentioned earlier, the highheat used in the pasteurization process tendsto destroy all the phosphatase enzymes,thereby making most milk products harmful.

Below is an example of the many forms ofphosphates to look out for.

Acetylated distarch phosphateAcid calcium phosphateAcid sodium pyrophosphateAmmonium phosphate dibasicAmmonium phosphate monobasicAmmonium phosphatidesAmmonium polyphosphatesAmmonium salts of phosphatic acidBone phosphate, edibleCalcium hydrogen orthophosphateCalcium phosphate dibasicCalcium phosphate monobasicCalcium phosphate tribasicCalcium polyphosphatesDicalcium diphosphateDisodium dihydrogen diphosphateDisodium dihydrogen pyrophosphateDisodium hydrogen orthophosphateDistarch phosphateEdible bone phosphateGuanosine 5' - (disodium phosphate)Hydroxypropyl distarch phosphateInosine 5' - (disodium phosphate)Magnesium hydrogen phosphateMonocalcium orthophosphateMonostarch phosphateOrthophosphoric acidPhosphated distarch phosphate

Phosphoric AcidPolyphosphates, ammoniumPolyphosphates, calciumPolyphosphates, potassium and sodiumPotassium dihydrogen orthophosphatePotassium phosphate dibasicPotassium phosphate monobasicPotassium phosphate tribasicPotassium polyphosphatesPotassium tripolyphosphateRiboflavin-5'-phosphate sodiumSodium acid pyrophosphateSodium aluminium phosphate, acidicSodium aluminium phosphate, basicSodium dihydrogen orthophosphateSodium phosphate dibasicSodium phosphate monobasicSodium phosphate tribasicSodium polyphosphatesSodium pyrophosphateSodium tripolyphosphateTetrapotassium diphosphateTripotassium orthophosphateTetrasodium diphosphateleTrisodium diphosphateTrisodium orthophosphate

In general, if it comes in a package, thenthere is a good chance it containsphosphates. You therefore have two choices ifyou want to stay healthy: You can either avoid

it. Or you can take magnesium to bind thephosphates. While the latter choice maysound like the easiest. You must bear in mindthat almost all processed foods containharmful ingredients. This book is onlydesigned to discuss the dangers ofphosphates. But there are many other harmfulingredients that you need to watch out for.Therefore the easiest way to stay healthy is toreduce your intake of processed foods asmuch as you can. It is interesting to note thatalmost all cultures that are known for theirlongevity share the one common denominator:that is that they have a low intake ofprocessed foods. Simply put: processed foodskill! If you want to stay healthy, you shouldavoid them as much as possible. Of course,we live in the real world and this is not alwayspractical for the average person. I know it ishard to watch your friends enjoying a meal ofsugar-laden foods while you are munching ona carrot stick. Obviously, at the next birthdayparty that you attend, whether it be your ownor someone else's, you would not want towatch everyone else enjoying that deliciouscake, while you have to sit on the sidelines.But if you are smart, you just may be able tohave your cake and eat it too. By taking 100-200 milligrams of magnesium malate with yourmeals, you can safely bind up the phosphatesand prevent their toxicity. In the following

chapter, I will go over the details ofmagnesium supplementation.

Magnesium to the rescue

One of the first books ever written onthe subject of magnesium was entitled:Magnesium: the Nutrient that could changeyour life. This book was first published back in1968. Despite this pretentious sounding title, itis clear that author Jerome Irving Rodale wasway ahead of his time. If you are an avidhealth enthusiast, you may recognize thename Rodale, as he is the founder of Rodalehealth books and Prevention magazine. Thisbook is out of print and hard to find; however,the full text of this book is available at themagnesium website at: mgwater.com

A more recent book by authorCarolyn Dean is entitled: The MagnesiumMiracle. Dr. Dean often calls herself "thedoctor of the future." While this may soundpretentious, it is clear that Dr. Dean is wayahead of her time. In the future I believe thatmore doctors will be prescribing magnesiumto their patients. For more information onCarolyn Dean and her book The Magnesium

Miracle, please visit Dr. Dean's website at:drcarolyndean.com

The current daily value for magnesiumis 400 milligrams. While this number maysound high compared to other minerals, itdoes not take into account the problem ofphosphate induced magnesium deficiency. AsI mentioned in previous chapters, phosphatestend to bind up magnesium and prevent itfrom being absorbed. This can be a goodthing, as it also prevents phosphates frombeing absorbed, and thereby causingcalcifications. Unfortunately, the high level ofphosphates in our diet has causedwidespread magnesium deficiencies in mostof the world. If you eat a diet of mostlyprocessed foods, then you will need morethan the current daily value of 400 milligrams.Furthermore, certain drugs can depletemagnesium. For example, a class of drugscalled Proton Pump inhibitors (PPI's) such asPrilosec and Prevacid have been shown tocause a severe depletion of magnesium. Thisproblem has become so serious that the FDAhas issue a warning that using these drugs forprolonged periods of time, particularly forlonger than one year, may be associated withlow serum magnesium levels(hypomagnesemia).

Many other drugs such asdiuretics have also been shown to deplete

magnesium levels. Ironically, diuretics areoften prescribed to people with high bloodpressure. The irony is that many cases of highblood pressure are caused by a magnesiumdeficiency.

High blood pressure and magnesium

If you have high blood pressure thenyou need to read the following: Many peoplewith high blood pressure have found that theirblood pressure returns to normal after a fewweeks of magnesium supplementation. Thekey word is "normalize." Magnesium does notactually lower your blood pressure, at leastnot in people with normal blood pressure. Butif your blood pressure is high, it can in manycases bring it back to normal. This can be anissue for people who regularly take medicationto lower their blood pressure. If you arecurrently taking a antihypertensive medication,and you start taking magnesium, then youmust carefully monitor your blood pressure ona daily basis and reduce your dosage of anti-hypertensive medication. In many cases youcan reduce or eliminate your need for suchmedication within a few weeks. I have recentlyreceived a number of emails from people whoclaimed that their magnesium supplementscaused them to develop low blood pressure.In every case, the person was using

antihypertensive medications in conjunctionwith their magnesium supplements. Themagnesium caused their blood pressure toreturn to normal, and if a person with normalblood pressure were to take antihypertensivemedication, they would get low bloodpressure. Some people have actually stoppedtaking their magnesium supplements becauseof fear that their blood pressure may get toolow. This is something that you don't want todo. If you have high blood pressure, then youare probably already magnesium deficient.And therefore, getting enough magnesium canmean the difference between life and death.Many people afflicted with hypertension havefound that their blood pressure becomesnormal after a few weeks of magnesiumsupplementation. I would normally say thatyou should work with your doctor, but manydoctors will advise you to avoid magnesiumsupplements because they know that theymay lose a patient if you start takingmagnesium. I know that many people mayfind this hard to believe, but it is true. In fact,people who get enough magnesium usuallylive very long healthy lives. For moreinformation about magnesium's effect on highblood pressure, check out a book entitled: TheMagnesium Solution for High Blood Pressure,by Jay Cohen.

Incidentally, those who respond best tomagnesium supplementation are the oneswho respond to the use of calcium channelblocker drugs. As mentioned earlier in thisbook, magnesium functions as a calciumchannel blocker, but without the side effects ofits pharmaceutical counterpart. In a recentstudy published in the Journal of the AmericanMedical Association Internal Medicine, it wasfound that calcium channel blocker drugs cansend your breast cancer risk skyrocketing bytwo and half times or more. For the record,these calcium channel blocker drugs accountfor approximately 100 million prescriptions ayear. If you are on one of these deadly drugs,then you will definitely want to givemagnesium a try.

Calcium channel blocker drugs include:amlodipine (Norvasc), diltiazem (CardizemLA, Tiazac), isradipine (DynaCirc CR),nicardipine (Cardene SR), nifedipine(Procardia, Procardia XL, Adalat CC),nisoldipine (Sular), and verapamil (Calan,Verelan, Covera-PM).

When looking for a magnesiumsupplement, be careful not to confuse it with

another similar sounding mineral called"manganese." This is not the same thing. Infact it is an entirely different mineral thanmagnesium. It is very easy to confuse the two,so look closely at the labels.

The “K” factor

Vitamin K2’s effect on calciummetabolism is well established. If you did aweb search of the words: ‘vitamin K +calcification,’ you would come up with manyhits. Granted, many of these websites aretrying to sell Vitamin K, there is nevertheless,ample evidence showing that vitamin K2 canprevent soft tissue calcification. Unlikemagnesium, whose effects influencephosphate metabolism. Vitamin K2 works bydirectly regulating the metabolism of calcium.That is, it keeps calcium out of the blood andkeeps it in the bones where it belongs. It doesthis by activating a protein called Osteocalcin.Osteocalcin is like the studs inside the walls ofa house; it is a structural framework that helpshold calcium in place in the bones. Butosteocalcin cannot do the job until vitamin K2converts it into its active, bone-building form.Bone health is directly related to the activationof osteocalcin. If there is not enough vitaminK2 available to activate this protein, largeamounts of inactive osteocalcin will circulatein the bloodstream. If supplemental vitamin K2is given to people with excess inactiveosteocalcin, the circulating levels will drop, asmore of it is made available for incorporation

in the bones. In essence, vitamin K2 can helpto keep calcium in the bones where it belongs.This makes it a very important vitamin forpreventing osteoporosis. As mentionedthroughout this book, most of the techniquesused to prevent calcification, can also preventosteoporosis. That is because most of thecalcium contained in calcifications is derivedfrom our bones. Thus, if we can keep thecalcium there, it will not end up in our softtissues. For this reason, vitamin K2 iscurrently being marketed as a treatment forosteoporosis. In Japan, vitamin K2 has beenan approved treatment for osteoporosis since1995. But in the United States most doctorshave never heard of its use. Again, there areno big pharmaceutical companies promotingit.

There is currently some debateregarding how much vitamin K our body'sneed. And some people may have a higherrequirement for this nutrient. In studies,people have used as much as 45 milligrams aday with no ill effects. The Japanese eat afood called natto, which has been shown tocontain a very high level of vitamin K-2. TheJapanese are well known for their longevity.

Vitamin K2 has been the subject ofseveral studies. Proponents of vitamin K2often quote the famous Rotterdam study. Thisstudy evaluated vitamin K intake of 4807

subjects over a 7-10 year period. Studyparticipants who consumed the most vitaminK2 had a 50% reduced risk of arterialcalcification. They also exhibited a 50%reduced risk for cardiovascular events duringthis 10 year period.

When shopping for vitamin K2supplements, it is very important tounderstand the different forms of vitamin K onthe market.

The two main forms of vitamin K arephylloquinone, which is also known as vitaminK-1. This is the form that influences bloodcoagulation. That is where the “K” comesfrom, as the Danish spell coagulation with a“K.” Vitamin K2 is the form that influencescalcium metabolism. To further confusematters, there are several subtypes of vitaminK2. The two main varieties that you willcommonly see are MK-4 and MK-7. VitaminK2 is also known as menaquinone. That’swhere the “M” in the subtypes comes from.The numbers indicate how many side chainsare attached to the main molecule (seediagram below).

Purveyors of MK-7 claim that becauseof its longer side chain, MK-7 is more activeand bioavailable, and stays in your systemlonger. While purveyors of MK-4 dispute thisclaim and say that MK4 is just as good as MK-7. It should be noted that MK-7 is usuallymore expensive than MK-4. Most of thestudies on K2 used the MK-7 form, and forthis reason, I usually recommend this form.This is not to discount the effectiveness ofMK-4. The MK-4 form is usually lessexpensive and therefore may be a good deal,as you can take more of it. But whatever formthat you use, you must remember that it is afat soluble vitamin. That is, it requires dietaryfat for absorption. Always remember to take itwith a little fat. I recommend about 100-200mircograms of vitamin K2 every day.Incidentally, that is ‘mirco’ not ‘milli’ grams.

For further information regarding vitamin K2’seffects on calcium metabolism, I highlyrecommend the excellent book entitled:Vitamin K2 and the Calcium Paradox, by KateRheaume-Bleue