The Magnesium Status and Suggested Reference Ranges of Plasma Magnesium, Calcium, and Calcium/Magnesium Ratio in Chinese Adults over 45 Years Old

• Published in: Nutrients Vol. 15; no. 4; p. 886
• Main Authors: Yang, Jingxin, Cao, Yang, Shan, Xiaoyun, Zhang, Huidi, Feng, Jie, Lu, Jiaxi, Yang, Lichen
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Switzerland MDPI AG 01.02.2023; MDPI
• Subjects: Age; Aged; Analysis; Blood pressure; Body mass index; Ca/Mg ratio; Calcium; Calcium, Dietary; Chinese adults; Education; Glucose; Health aspects; Health surveillance; Hemoglobin; Inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry; Laboratories; Lipids; Magnesium; Magnesium in the body; Mass spectrometry; Mass spectroscopy; Measurement; Middle aged persons; Nutrition; Nutrition research; Nutritional status; Plasma; Populations; Questionnaires; reference range; Reference values (Medicine); Sample size; Uric acid; China; United States > US; magnesium; reference range; calcium; Ca/Mg ratio; Chinese adults
• ISSN: 2072-6643; 2072-6643
• DOI: 10.3390/nu15040886

Magnesium (Mg) is an essential nutrient that participates in various enzymatic reactions and regulates important biological functions. The distribution and reference ranges in China have not been reported in populations more than 45 years old. This study aimed to assess the magnesium status and determine the reference values of plasma Mg, Ca, and Ca/Mg ratios for China's population more than 45 years old. A total of 2101 people were randomly selected from the China Nutrition and Health surveillance (CNHS) (2015-2017), considering the regional types and monitoring points. Then, 337 healthy individuals were further selected by a series of strict inclusion criteria to explore the reference range. The plasma magnesium and calcium were tested by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). The suggested reference values for plasma Mg, Ca, and Ca/Mg ratios were 0.75-1.14 mmol/L, 2.17-3.64 mmol/L, and 2.36-3.66, respectively. Taking 0.75 mmol/L as the lower cut-off limit, the prevalence of Mg deficiency was 6.66%, and the average level of plasma magnesium was 0.88 mmol/L for populations older than 45 years in China. In conclusion, this study provides the magnesium status and reference ranges for plasma Mg, Ca, and Ca/Mg ratio for Chinese people over 45 years old. The results of the recommended reference ranges in this study were very similar to our published results in women of reproductive age. Thus, the reference range of plasma magnesium in different populations in China was further improved.