Without this, vitamin D can be worse than worthless

If there’s one vitamin we can’t live without sufficient amounts of, it would be D.

And you may be doing whatever it takes to make sure that you’re not deficient — getting out in the sun, taking a supplement, or even eating the right foods. But still, you’re not feeling up to par.

Well, there could be a very good reason for that. Vitamin D on its own isn’t enough. In fact, it’s inactive until your body converts it into a useable form. And to do that you need to make sure that you’re also getting D’s partner in health.

Just as Hardy wouldn’t have someone to blame without Laurel, and Batman couldn’t keep Gotham City safe without Robin, vitamin D needs it’s trusty sidekick as well.

And that’s a mighty mineral that millions are coming up short on.

A new study has confirmed that if your levels of this mineral are too low, all those steps you’re taking to up your D may not be doing a darn thing to keep you healthy.

So, here’s how to get exactly what you need to make sure the sunshine vitamin is able to put all its superpowers to work for you!

The dynamic duo!

If you want to maintain healthy blood pressure, protect your heart, dodge diabetes and cancer, keep your memories intact, protect your bones, stay flu free, and even ease certain heart conditions, you want to make sure you’re not just getting enough vitamin D — but magnesium, too.

In fact, HSI advisory panel member Dr. Mark Stengler calls magnesium the ultimate “team player.”

But as researchers out of the Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine are now telling us, up to 50 percent of all Americans may not be getting sufficient amounts of this mineral – and that means that vitamin D may stay “inactive” in our bodies… and not be able to do a thing!

That can put you at risk for serious health problems… and especially set you up for bad bone breaks.

Last year, I told you about a study out of the UK that looked at over 2,000 middle-aged men and found that those who had the lowest blood levels of magnesium were much more likely to suffer fractures – especially of the hip.

On the other hand, the men with the highest levels of this mineral didn’t break a single bone during the entire study – which lasted over 20 years!

As Dr. Stengler explains it, “You won’t get any bone benefits at all from taking just one of these two nutrients… you need magnesium to convert the D into its active form.”

But missing out on your D benefits isn’t all that can happen if you’re lacking in the magnesium department.

Another finding from the Lake Erie College researchers was that if your magnesium levels are low enough, vitamin D can, in effect, cause damaging “vascular calcification.”

So, not only will you be D-deficient regardless of how much you take, this vital vitamin can cause an increase in your calcium levels, leading to a decidedly unhealthy buildup of calcium in your blood vessels.

Plus that, on its own, magnesium actually performs hundreds of necessary tasks throughout your entire body – not the least of which is keeping your heart beating!

As those researchers have advised, the best thing you can do to get the most out of vitamin D is to “not forget magnesium.”

And here’s how you can do that.

Dr. Stengler recommends loading your plate with greens (such as spinach and Swiss chard), nuts (such as cashews), and seeds (such as pumpkin and sesame).

And, of course, adding a magnesium supplement of around 300 to 400 mg is an excellent idea.

One other thing to know about magnesium is that certain drugs, especially those popular acid- suppressing ones known as proton pump inhibitors (such as Nexium and Prilosec) can actually deplete your magnesium levels!

So, if you’ve never taken them, don’t start. And if you’re currently on one, now’s the time to slowly wean yourself off of it.

“Low magnesium levels make vitamin D ineffective” American Osteopathic Association” February 26, 2018, ScienceDaily, sciencedaily.com