Dear Lactneters,
Do many of you use Calcium and Magnesium supplements to treat nipple
vasospasm in breastfeeding women? An article by Mayer (1988, An Overview of
solutions to breastfeeding and sucking problems, La Leche League
International, Illinois) suggests using calcium (2000mg per day) and
magnesium (1000mg per day) to treat this problem.
A review of the mainstream medical literature failed to refer to the use of
calcium or magnesium to treat vasospasm affecting any other organ.
I was fascinated when I was again doing a literature search on this topic
the other night when I found an article measuring the magnesium
concentration in erythrocytes in a group of 30 women with the vasospasm of
primary Raynaud's phenomenon compared to a group of controls. The women
with primary Raynaud's phenomenon had a significantly lower magnesium
concentration in erythrocytes during winter (when you would expect
vasospasm to be at its worse) than did the controls. (Leppert J, Aberg H.
et al, The concentration of magnesium in erythrocytes in female patients
with primary Raynaud's phenomenon; fluctuation with the time of year,
Angiology 45: 283-288 1994). So there does seem to be a rationale for the
use of magnesium to treat this problem. So what do you use?

Laureen Lawlor-Smith
South Australia
(I am sure this is more topical for some of you in the Northern Hemisphere,
who have been experiencing a bitterly cold winter than it is for us here in
Australia where we have just had our eighth consecutive day over 35 Degrees
Celsius!)