Chronic Latent Magnesium Deficiency and an Unbalanced Calcium-to-Magnesium Ratio Impact Fetal Development and Maternal Health

During pregnancy, a mother experiences increased metabolic demands to meet the needs of the fetus. A mismatch between these demands and nutrient intake can result in a host of developmental abnormalities to the fetus and health risks to the mother. Several studies have reported strong correlations between deficiency of the essential mineral, magnesium (Mg), and many pregnancy complications, including intrauterine growth restriction, preeclampsia, gestational diabetes, and preterm delivery. Mg also impacts fetal programming and disease presentation in childhood and adulthood, showing that aberrant Mg levels in utero have far-reaching consequences. In this narrative review and commentary, we evaluated recently published data to identify a range of serum Mg concentrations that may reflect chronic latent Mg deficiency (0.7–0.85 mmol/L). We then evaluated independent studies that reported on the relationship between Mg levels and pregnancy outcomes to assess whether this cutoff may help identify patients at risk for adverse events and inform therapeutic strategies. Our analysis showed that chronic latent Mg deficiency coupled with a molar ratio of serum calcium to serum Mg >3 may indicate increased risk to mother or fetus. Given the high social and economic burdens of pregnancy complications, nutritional supplementation that includes Mg at all stages of pregnancy may be a safe and cost-effective way to mitigate the risk of adverse outcomes for mother and child.