The Mayo Clinic is stating the Importance of Genetic Testing for Long QT Syndrome, a problem with the heart where an electrical disturbance causes sudden cardiac death- and is most well known for the sudden death that occurs in athletes. And the BBC is reporting that Doctors Want to Take Tissue Samples of Sudden Death Victims for research- whether their family wants the tissue samples taken or not! All of this in order to find out the ‘genetic causes’ of this sudden cardiac death that occurs most frequently from Long QT Syndrome.

 

 

But even the Mayo Clinic states “Our research shows that genetic testing is just one piece of the information a physician needs to look at,” What this means is that they are going to pour a ton of money into finding out what the genetics are of Prolonged QT Interval and, like most of these other genetic studies, find out that a certain number of people WITH the genetics to have a particular disease get it, while a certain number DON’T and that environmental factors have more to do with getting whatever disease they happen to be studying than their $200 million genetic studies are showing.

But what neither of these studies mentioned is the connection between sudden cardiac death, Long QT Syndrome and Magnesium Deficiency. Magnesium is an electrolyte that is vitally important in the electrical activity of the heart and there is a HUGE connection between sudden cardiac death and magnesium deficiency. In fact, The American Heart Association states that Sudden Death From Congestive Heart Failure “…may be entirely the result of potassium and magnesium depletion…”, yet the conclusion of the AMA was that these patients needed SURGERY to correct their tendency towards the electrical disturbance!

 

Surgery to correct problems caused by Magnesium Deficiency!?

 

Interestingly, ER Doctors are WELL aware of this connection between Sudden Cardiac Death and Long QT Syndrome. When someone comes into the ER with Prolonged QT Interval and is in cardiac arrest- the answer is to give them an Intravenous Infusion of Magnesium. In many cases, this is the ONLY treatment that will bring these patients back from the verge of death. But while magnesium’s use is VITAL to bring these people back from death, virtually no cardiologists are suggesting that this Sudden Cardiac Death could be PREVENTED with the same magnesium that is used for its treatment in an emergency.

Back in 2001, the study Magnesium: Its Proven and Potential Clinical Significance, however, lamented the lack of studies using Magnesium as prevention for these heart problems. The few studies that HAVE been done on the subject DO show value in the use of Magnesium to prevent Long QT Syndrome.

 

 

The 1981 Study, The effect of slow releasing oral magnesium chloride on the qtc interval.. studied people who were PRETREATED with oral magnesium before open heart surgery. Those who took magnesium had NO electrical disturbance and a shorter qt interval (that’s a good thing) after surgery than those who didn’t.

The 1978 study The Effect of Oral Magnesium Chloride Therapy on the
QTc and QUc Intervals. states,

 

“Findings included (i) a statistically significant decrease in
QTc and QUc intervals; (ii) a progressive shor.ening of
QTc and QUc intervals with continuing therapy; (iii) reversion
to normal of ECG abnormalities…”

 

So the people in the above study showed COMPLETELY NORMAL electrical activity in their heart after daily supplementation with magnesium.

One of the problems with using magnesium for the prevention and treatment of these problems is that Magnesium Levels in the Blood do not accurately reflect the NEED for magnesium, and people can be severely magnesium deficient and have NORMAL magnesium levels. But the doctors who rely on these tests for treatment, see these normal levels and believe that these patients who go on to die later, had normal magnesium levels.

But cardiologists are simply not paying attention to these studies and even though magnesium has few Magnesium Side Effects and has absolutely been shown to be the ONLY treatment of sudden cardiac death from Long QT Syndrome, because studies haven’t “Conclusively Proven” that magnesium will help to prevent this problem, it is ignored entirely. And when people’s lives are on the line, in my opinion, this is just irresponsible.

 

Kerri Knox, RN- The Immune Health Queen
Functional Medicine Practitioner
Easy Immune Health.com

 

 

Tags: long qt interval, sudden cardiac death, sudden death in athletes, ventricular fibrillation

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