Resenha: “Magnesium in human health and disease”

By Alexandre R. Lobo

WATSON RR, PREEDY VR, SIBADI S (Eds.). Magnesium in human health and disease. New York: Humana Press, 2013. 309p.

The book Magnesium in Human Health and Disease, which is part of the Nutrition and Health Series, presentes comprehensive and current aspects of magnesium status in diferente pathological conditions. The book, which features the collaboration of over 50 researchers from diferente countries, contains 20 chapters, divided into 5 sections. In the first section, it is showed the main aspects of the assessment of dietary consumption and mineral status as well as the biochemical basis of their role in inflammation, endotelial function and cytokine regulation. The scond section contains four chapters that describe the importance of magnesium status in the development of chronic diseases. The influence of genetic costitution in maintaining mineral homeostasis and its implications in glycemic control in diabetics are also emphasized. The third section discusses the therapeutic potential of magnesium supplementation in metabolic syndrome and associated conditions. The impact of this intervention in the treatment of osteoporosis are also discussed by considering the involvement of magnesium in boné physiology, specifically in bone formation and regulation of parathyroid hormone secretion as well as by its actions on vitamin D metabolismo. In the fourth section, the importance of magnesium in the cardiovascular system is showed in four chapters. The consequences of magnesium deficiency in the development of hypertension, arrhythmia and heart failure are based on results of epidemiological, clinical and experimental studies. Magnesium acts as a natural calcium channel blocker and, among others effects, affects the vascular tone, platelet aggregation, endotelial function and lipid metabolism. In the fifth and final part, five chapters describe comprehensively the basis of the clinical role of magnesium in neurological function. The book features in each chapter, a table with the key points addressed and a set of current references that help to contextualize and deepen the theme. In summary, the book presentes recente and highly relevant information about magnesium, which will allow students, clinicians and scientists to expand their knowledge on the role of magnesium in healthy individuals as well as those affected by acute or chronic pathological conditions.

Resenha originalmente publicada em Braz J Pharmaceutical Sciences, v.50 (1), p.227, 2014

#Magnésio #Nutrição