Magnesium is an essential cofactor required for hundreds of enzymatic processes within the body and plays a vital role in many bodily functions. Aside from correcting a deficiency, magnesium supplementation has many well studied therapeutic benefits, one of which is the prevention and treatment of pain. Magnesium itself doesn’t have sensory pain blocking effects in the body tissues, rather it may reduce the perception of pain in the brain. This results in a pain relieving effect.

A series of recent systematic reviews have looked at magnesium in peri- and post-operative pain. It was determined that the administration of magnesium during and after surgery significantly reduces post-operative pain (Guo et al, Jerkovic ), side effects associated with anaesthetic (Peng), and the amount of pain relief needed following surgery (Bujalska-Zadrozny).

Pain management during and post-surgery is an important aspect of surgical care. This is because the amount and intensity of pain experienced after surgery can predict whether a patient will experience long-term chronic pain and require the ongoing use of pain medication. The use of magnesium alongside conventional pain medications may reduce some of these risks
There is also a plethora of evidence to support the use of magnesium in neuropathic pain, post-herpetic neuralgia, chemotherapy induced peripheral neuropathy, fibromyalgia, period pain, and headache.

Magnesium is a safe and well-tolerated nutritional supplement that research suggests is efficacious in pain prevention and relief. Playing a role in so many important functions within the body, in addition to its analgesic effects magnesium may also positively influence the underlying disease process for which pain relief is required.

If you would like to discuss magnesium for pain relief reach out to your natural health practitioner https://www.biomedica.com.au/find-a-practitioner.

Reference List

• https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26431120