Magnesium intake and all-cause mortality after stroke: a cohort study

Area of Science:

• Nutritional Epidemiology
• Cardiovascular Health
• Mortality Studies

Background:

• Population studies link magnesium to reduced stroke and mortality risk.
• The role of magnesium in post-stroke mortality is not well-established.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the association between total magnesium intake and all-cause mortality risk in stroke survivors.
• To explore whether dietary and supplemental magnesium intake influences mortality after stroke.

Main Methods:

• Analysis of 917 stroke patients from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) 2007-2018.
• Total magnesium intake calculated from diet and supplements, adjusted for energy intake.
• Cox regression and restricted cubic splines used to assess mortality risk over a median 5.3-year follow-up.

Main Results:

• Insufficient magnesium intake was prevalent (70.2% males, 73.7% females).
• Higher total magnesium intake was inversely associated with all-cause mortality (HR 0.97 per 1-mg/(100 kcal*d) increase, p=0.017).
• The highest quartile of magnesium intake showed a 40% reduction in mortality risk compared to the lowest (HR 0.60, p=0.024).

Conclusions:

• Adequate total magnesium intake (dietary and supplemental) is associated with reduced all-cause mortality in stroke survivors.
• The association was significant in specific subgroups, including older individuals, females, and those without hypertension.
• Dietary magnesium alone may not be significantly related to post-stroke mortality.