by Lawrence Wilson, MD

THE CALCIUM/MAGNESIUM RATIO

The calcium/magnesium ratio on a hair mineral analysis can yield a lot of very valuable information.

THEMES OF THE CALCIUM/MAGNESIUM RATIO

· Calcium represents structure and stability. In excessive quantity it can indicate defensiveness and a defensive or protective stance or posturing. As a mineral, calcium is stable, sluggish, dense and heavy. Think of cement, which is mainly made of calcium compounds. Calcium is the main structural element of the human body and most animal bodies.
In electrical terms, calcium represents pressure or compressive strength, or voltage to use an electrical analogy. This is quite advanced, but is an important aspect of hair mineral analysis interpretation if one is more advanced with it.

· Magnesium is a metal that burns very hot and bright. Magnesium is also needed for thousands of critical enzymes in the body. Magnesium is also shiny and bright, and very light in weight, unlike calcium. Racing bicycles are typically made of magnesium alloys, for example, and magnesium is used to start fires and for flares that must burn brightly and hot. Magnesium tends to keep calcium in solution in animal bodies and structures.
In electrical terms, magnesium is about amperage or intensity, unlike calcium which is about pressure. Ohm’s law applies here

· The ratio between calcium and magnesium has to do with the balance of these qualities in the human body. That is, how much structure is present versus how much enzymatic fire or energy is present. One must also understand the concept of the bioavailability of calcium and magnesium. This is not discussed in depth in this article, but is discussed in the article on this website entitled calcium.
The ratio also corresponds to Ohm’s law, the basic law in all types of electrical circuitry. That is, the ratio of calcium to magnesium has to do with the pressure and stress that is present in the body. This is more advanced, however.

· There are definite parallels between the calcium/magnesium ratio and the sodium/potassium ratio, although there are specific differences as well. These are explored below.

These descriptions may seem esoteric or vague, but they can point the way to understanding the calcium/magnesium ratio. Dr. Paul Eck was aware of them and may have used them to help him learn about this important ratio.

THE IDEAL AND GOOD RANGES FOR THIS RATIO

Dr. Eck felt that a healthful range for this ratio is about 3.3 to 10 in a hair sample that has not been washed at the laboratory. Overall, I have confirmed this over a number of years of testing hair samples.

However, I prefer to use a slightly tighter ideal range of about 4 to 9.5. In fact, I prefer that the ratio be in even a tighter range of about 5 to 8 for optimum health.

Washing hair at the laboratory. Washing the hair at the lab, as almost all laboratories do, will render the calcium and magnesium readings much less accurate. For this reason, I only recommend Analytical Research Labs and Trace Elements, Inc. for calcium, magnesium, sodium and other mineral readings.

A SUGAR AND CARBOHYDRATE TOLERANCE RATIO

Dr. Eck called the calcium/magnesium ratio the sugar and carbohydrate tolerance ratio because a high ratio, he felt, indicated that a person was eating excessive carbohydrates in the diet, exceeding one’s carbohydrate tolerance for these foods. Carbohydrates, of course, are energy foods as opposed to proteins, for example, that have more to do with body structure.

Overeating on these “fuel” foods can imbalance the delicate ratio between body structure and body movement or solubility. In most people, overeating on carbohydrates involves eating white flour and refined sugar, both of which have had most of their magnesium stripped away. Perhaps this could contribute to the imbalanced ratio as well.

An important note about this diet-related ratio. One person may “tolerate” many more carbohydrates than another. Thus, the calcium/magnesium ratio is not a measure of a set quantity of carbohydrates in the diet. That which is too much for one person may be perfectly fine for another person whose carbohydrate tolerance is higher due to better health or other factors.

A diabetic trend. Dr. Eck also felt that when the ratio is greater than about 12:1 or less than about 3.3:1, a person has a diabetic trend. This may be true, but I have not been able to confirm this connection, as yet.

THE DEFENSIVENESS OR PROTECTIVENESS RATIO

A high calcium/magnesium ratio, in general, is associated with a more protective or defensive posturing. In contrast, a low ratio is associated with a more open or receptive nature or posturing. This is seen most clearly in the bowl and the hill patterns, which involve the calcium/magnesium ratio.

Bowl pattern. The bowl pattern involves a high calcium/magnesium ratio. Its meaning is that a person feels stuck or immobile, like being caught in a sink or bowl without a way out. Interestingly, a person with this pattern often defends his or her situation. Read The Bowl Pattern for more on this interesting pattern.

Hill pattern. The hill pattern is the opposite. It involves a low calcium/magnesium ratio and the pattern, when it applies, which is not all of the time, indicates a certain openness and willingness to move on in life. It may indicate a celebration due to having “turned a corner”, or having “moved on”, or climbing to the top of a hill so that the way ahead is smoother sailing. Read The Hill Pattern for more about this pattern.

A LIFESTYLE RATIO

Spiritual defensiveness. I have found that when the calcium/magnesium ratio is above about 13 to 13.5, especially on an initial hair mineral analysis when the hair is not washed at the laboratory, that it has an entirely different meaning. It appears to indicate that either a lifestyle factor such as a job or relationship or location, for example, is getting in the way of one’s health and needs to be changed. It may also indicate an attitude that needs to be shifted in order to improve health.

An important aspect of this is that a person is often consciously or unconsciously defending the lifestyle factor or attitude that is holding the person back. This defensiveness is the real problem, as the situation or attitude usually no longer applies or no longer makes sense for the person. In this regard, the pattern may be described as one of “holding on after the need is over”.

The pattern is called spiritual defensiveness simply to refer to lifestyle and attitudes, rather than a biochemical, dietary or nutritional type of holding on. In rare cases, the diet with excessive carbohydrates is a factor in a very high calcium/magnesium ratio, but not too often, in our experience so far.

So, in this regard, the calcium/magnesium ratio may be called a lifestyle ratio, especially if we include diet as a factor in the lifestyle. By this I mean that the calcium/magnesium ratio appears to have more to do with external events or circumstances in a person’s life, whereas the sodium/potassium ratio, by contrast, seems to have more to do with internal biochemical imbalances. This is a generalization, but it often appears to be the case.

A possible reason for this is that calcium and magnesium are more structural elements, particularly calcium. In contrast, sodium and potassium are the body’s internal regulators. They are more responsible for the biochemical balance, for example, than are calcium and magnesium. I know this is vague, but as we search for the meaning of various ratios and levels in the tissues, these simple understandings actually take on great meaning.

Another possible explanation is that calcium and magnesium indicate more about cellular situations, while sodium and potassium may have more to do with the cell membrane potential, something that is slightly different.

Lifestyle need and a high calcium/magnesium ratio. A calcium/magnesium ratio above about 13 to 13.5 signifies a need to move on in one’s life. This is what is called a movement aspect of this pattern. Interestingly, hair mineral patterns can often help a practitioner identify either a movement direction that is occurring or that needs to occur to clear the pattern. This is another subject for a separate article.

This is most evident, perhaps, in the bowl pattern and the step down pattern. Both involve a high calcium/magnesium ratio so they may tell us more about this ratio:

The bowl pattern often indicates a person is defending his frustration and hostility, and thus feeling very stuck. One might say that the defensiveness of the high calcium/magnesium ratio is compounded by a low sodium/potassium ratio, which reinforces a type of stuck pattern.

On contrast, the step down pattern often indicates a person who is exhausted but is feeling a need to move on, and is doing so. In the case of step down pattern, the protectiveness and defensiveness of the high calcium/magnesium ratio is being used to good advantage to “cover” or protect the person in his or more often her effort to move on in life. Although one may be defensive, the high sodium/potassium ratio indicates an ability, both physically and perhaps emotionally, to move forward in life and experience some acute stress to do this.

Lifestyle and a low calcium/magnesium ratio. When the ratio is less than about 3 or so, it may indicate a lack of defensiveness or a high degree of openness. This is occasionally a good thing, as when a person has a hill pattern. However, most of the time it is not healthful. It may indicate a type of “giving up” pattern, somewhat similar to a low sodium/potassium ratio. In the case of a step up pattern, it may even indicate recklessness and a desire to harm oneself in some way. The step up pattern and the hill both involve a low calcium/magnesium ratio, so they can teach us more about this ratio.

For more details on these interesting hair mineral analysis patterns, read Spiritual Defensiveness Pattern and Step Up And Step Down Patterns.

A VERY HIGH and VERY LOW CALCIUM/MAGNESIUM RATIO

When the calcium/magnesium ratio is above about 35 to 40, or below about 1.5 to 2, it may have a different meaning, at least to some degree. It often indicates poorer health and a less stable structure or life force, perhaps. This is because the balance of calcium and magnesium in the body is very critical and when it is extremely unbalanced, it is not healthy, just as is the case with the sodium/potassium ratio and other ratios as well.

An extremely high calcium/magnesium ratio (above 35-45) has not been studied as much, but may be a variant of the calcium shell in some ways. The person appears to be less clear about himself or herself in some fundamental way, and is thus withdrawn or involved in a lifestyle or in attitudes that are not appropriate. It may also represent a lot of defensiveness.

An extremely low calcium/magnesium ratio (less than 1.5 to 2) also needs more study. However, it is probably related to a low sodium/potassium ratio in that it is a give-up pattern, too open, not defending the self enough in some emotional way, perhaps. It is also seen in some cases of magnesium loss or biounavailable magnesium, both of which are not healthful. It may be related to lowered calcium levels. Recall that calcium represents structure, protection and life, in general.

It is not due to low calcium in the diet, as far as I can tell. While hair mineral levels correlate well with the diet in animals, the mineral levels tend to correlate much more poorly in human beings with the mineral intake in the diet.

Courses | About Dr. Wilson | Contact Us | The Free Basic Program