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Magnesium absorption from mineral water

European Journal of Clinical Nutrition volume 57, pages 801–802 (2003)Cite this article

We read with interest the paper of Verhas et al (2002), who studied magnesium (Mg) bioavailability from mineral water. The test was carried out on 300 ml of water containing 1.2 mmol of Mg. Using the radioisotope 28Mg, administered orally and intravenously on two separate sessions, Mg absorption (MgA) was estimated to be 59.1±13.6% (mean±s.d.). We recently worked on the comparison of stable isotopic methods for MgA determination in men and have some comments to make regarding the method used by Verhas et al. Secondly, we would like to underline that MgA is mainly dose dependent, making comparisons between studies difficult.

The method applied by Verhas et al has been previously described by Danielson et al (1979). MgA was determined using the double labelling method, with a time between the two administrations ranging from 35 to 84 days. It was calculated as the quotient between forearm radioactivity values obtained 24 h after oral and intravenous 28Mg administration, respectively. This calculation is the same as that used in a stable isotope field, which was initially adapted from the radioisotope technique (Turnlund, 1989; Sandström et al, 1993). In order to validate this approach, the method using stable isotopes were systematically compared with the single labelling method corrected for faecal endogenous excretion (Friel et al, 1992; Rauscher et al, 1997; Lowe et al, 2000). We compared these approaches in humans in order to validate the double labelling method for MgA determination. 26Mg (70 mg) was administered orally and 15 min later 30 mg of 25Mg were injected. Results using the double labelling from plasma at 6, 11, 16 and 24 h after the isotope administration were significantly higher than the faecal monitoring method corrected for faecal endogenous excretion, that is, 61±10, 63±11, 59±10, 56±9% vs 48±5% (mean±s.d., n=6), respectively (Sabatier et al, accepted). Results agree with the reference method when determined from plasma after 72 h postisotope administration or in urine after 24 h postisotope administration when pooled by 24 h periods. The results for Mg are in agreement with those observed for other elements. Generally, the results from double labelling comply with single labelling when determined from serum or urine collections starting ⩾24–48 h, depending on the nutrient, following isotope administrations (Lee et al, 1994; Lowe et al, 2000). This time is necessary since isotopes are metabolised at the same rate once equilibrium has been reached. Consequently, an early measurement as was carried out in the Verhas paper could lead to erroneous results. This method could be used to compare the MgA of two products, but needs to be validated against other methods, especially if it is used only to estimate MgA. Although the validation of this method could be of great interest for MgA determination, the short half-life (21.4 h) of 28Mg could limit the development of the method, and stable isotopes have the advantage of being safer for subjects.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Nestle Water Institute BP 101 88 804 Vittel Cedex, France

    M Sabatier & M J Arnaud

  2. Western Human Nutrition Research Center USDA/ARS One Shields Avenue University of California Davis, 95616, CA, USA

    J R Turnlund

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  1. M Sabatier
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  2. M J Arnaud
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  3. J R Turnlund
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Sabatier, M., Arnaud, M. & Turnlund, J. Magnesium absorption from mineral water. Eur J Clin Nutr 57, 801–802 (2003). https://doi.org/10.1038/sj.ejcn.1601750

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