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Some good sources of magnesium include leafy green vegetables — such as spinach — legumes, nuts, seeds and whole grains. Tap, mineral, and bottled waters can also be sources of magnesium, but how much magnesium they contain depends on the brand.
Cooking vegetables can make the cell walls less rigid, which makes it easier to absorb certain nutrients and digest food better. For example, cooked carrots have more beta carotene, an antioxidant that can be converted to Vit A and improve bone, eye and reproductive health.
Carrots provide more antioxidants when boiled or steamed than when eaten raw, according to a January 2008 report in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry. In fact, researchers found that boiling carrots until tender increased the concentration of carotenoids by 14 percent.
Another study showed both boiling and steaming increased levels of beta carotene. But try to cook carrots whole, as cutting can reduce nutrients by 25%. Wait and wash veggies just before cooking to preserve nutrients. In fact, cooking veggies whole is often the best choice to preserve nutrients.
Magnesium deficiency in healthy people is rare but it can be caused by: a poor diet (especially in elderly people or those who don't have enough to eat) type 2 diabetes. digestive problems such as Crohn's disease.
Phytates in the diet bind to magnesium and impair its absorption. However the quantities present in normal diet do not affect magnesium absorption. Other dietary factors that are thought to affect magnesium absorption are oxalate, phosphate, proteins, potassium and zinc.
How much magnesium can be found in potatoes? A 175g portion of boiled new potatoes in their skins provides 8% of your NRV (Nutrient Reference Values) of magnesium. You'll find about 49mg of magnesium in a medium sized potato which is a hefty contribution to the recommended allowance.
Broccoli is not just a good source of magnesium, but it also contains other nutrients like vitamins C and K, fiber, and calcium.
In addition to leafy greens, other vegetables high in magnesium include potatoes, broccoli, and carrots.
Spinach. Spinach is chock-full of all kinds of minerals, including magnesium. One cup of raw spinach has 24 milligrams of magnesium19—which isn't bad—but cooked spinach has 157 milligrams of magnesium. 20 Cooked spinach also contains calcium, potassium, zinc, iron, and lots of vitamins A and K.
A 142-g cup of unpeeled cucumber also provides 193 mg of potassium and 17 mg of magnesium. The Dietary Guidelines recommend that adults consume 4,700 mg of potassium each day and 310–410 mg of magnesium, depending on sex and age.
Cooking releases some of the calcium that's bound to oxalic acid. Three cups of raw spinach, for example, have 90 milligrams of calcium, whereas one cup of cooked has nearly triple the amount (259 milligrams). Cooking vegetables also increases the amount of magnesium and iron that's available to the body.
Tips for improving magnesium absorption
reducing or avoiding calcium-rich foods two hours before or after eating magnesium-rich foods. avoiding high-dose zinc supplements. treating vitamin D deficiency. eating raw vegetables instead of cooking them.
The active form of vitamin D (calcitriol) may slightly increase intestinal absorption of magnesium (6).
Magnesium glycinate -- Magnesium glycinate (magnesium bound with glycine, a non-essential amino acid) is one of the most bioavailable and absorbable forms of magnesium, and also the least likely to induce diarrhea.
Peeling a carrot does not remove the majority of vitamins, according to the Tufts University Nutrition Letter. The carrot skin contains concentrated vitamin C and niacin but just under the peel, the next layer, the phloem, also has these vitamins, along with vitamin A.
“Overall, while removing the peel reduces some phytonutrients and small amounts of the vitamins and minerals in carrots, there is plenty of nutritional value left behind. Remember, the peel is only a small portion of the total vegetable.
Carrots are a versatile vegetable. People can eat them raw, steamed, boiled, roasted, or as an ingredient in soups and stews. Boiling vegetables can reduce or eliminate some of the vitamin content. Raw or steamed carrots provide the most nutritional value.