Building Blocks of our Physical Bodies

Calcium, magnesium, potassium:
Essential building blocks of our physical bodies

"Dust to dust" is a Biblical reference describing where our bodies came from and to where they return after our souls have left them. Science has since been able to confirm the dust-to-dust explanation by discovering that the building blocks of our physical bodies are elemental minerals such as calcium, magnesium and potassium. In other words, elemental atoms combine to become molecules, which form bonds to make specific types of cells that arrange themselves to create the skin, bone, muscle, vessels, gray matter, fluids and connective tissues that comprise our bodies. From the aforementioned flowchart, it is easy to understand what happens to the body when it is not provided with adequate supplies of "dust."

Calcium

Calcium is involved in almost every biological function and is the most abundant mineral in the body-99 percent of which is deposited in the bones and teeth. The remaining one percent provides the electrical energy for the heart to beat and for nerve stimulation responsible for muscle movement. Calcium is also critical to the metabolism of vitamin D and, to function properly, it must be accompanied by magnesium, phosphorus and vitamins A, C, D and E.

Another important biological function of calcium is DNA replication, which is crucial for maintaining a vitally healthy body. DNA replication is the basis for all body repair and can only occur "on a substrate of calcium." Therefore, low calcium levels equate to impaired healing ability and premature aging.

Perhaps the most critical balance the body must maintain is the acid/alkaline balance, or pH. Calcium is vital to maintaining this balance. Calcium to acid is like water to a fire: Calcium quickly destroys oxygen-robbing acid in the body fluids. Sufficient intake of biologically-available calcium creates more oxygen at the cellular level, eliminating the environment necessary for cancer cells to thrive.

 Calcium quantity and quality: Researchers have examined the diet of people throughout the world who consume over 100 times our recommended daily allowance of calcium. These people live 40 years longer than we do, age at half the rate we do and are devoid of cancer, heart disease, mental disorders, diabetes, arthritis and other degenerative diseases. Nearly all of these people- Armenians, Azerbaijanis and Georgians in Russia, Tibetans, Hunzas of Northern Pakistan, Vilcabamba Indians in Ecuador, Bamas in China and the Titicacans in Peru-live at high altitudes above 8,000 feet. Their primary sources of water are melting glaciers, and the glacial water is so turbid and white with ground up rock that these cultures call the water "milk of the mountains."


Each quart of this water contains over 17,000 milligrams of calcium along with other minerals and 60 trace metals. These cultures drink lots of this water everyday and their crops are also loaded with calcium and other trace minerals.

The only long-living and disease-free culture that does not live above an altitude of 8,000 feet is the Okinawans in Japan. Okinawa is home to one of the world's highest concentration of centenarians (people living beyond their 100th birthday are not that unusual in Okinawa).

Magnesium

Though only accounting for about .05% of total body weight, magnesium is essential to many metabolic processes. Nearly 70% of body magnesium is deposited in bones and teeth with calcium and phosphorus; the remaining 30% is found in soft tissues and body fluids.

Magnesium promotes the absorption and metabolism of other minerals and, inside the cell, it activates the enzymes necessary for the metabolism of carbohydrates and amino acids.

The level of magnesium necessary for robust health is related to the amount of other minerals, particularly calcium, that is consumed. Higher levels of magnesium are also needed when blood cholesterol levels are high and when protein consumption is high.

Magnesium deficiency is especially prominent in those with diabetes (and other pancreatic disorders), chronic alcoholics and persons with kidney problems. Magnesium deficiency is linked to heart disease as it tends to result in the formation of blood clots in the heart and brain and contributes to the accumulation of calcium deposits in the kidneys, blood vessels and heart.

An adequate supply of magnesium is also necessary to retain the storage of potassium in the cells.
The use of supplemental magnesium has been known to help alleviate insomnia and, due to its alkalinity, is used in over-the-counter preparations as an antacid. It should also be noted that it is magnesium (combined with calcium), not calcium alone, that forms the hard tooth enamel that is resistant to decay.

Potassium

An essential mineral found mainly in intracellular fluid, potassium constitutes about 5% of the body's total mineral content.

Potassium and sodium are critical to the regulation of water balances within the body. They work together regulating the distribution of fluids from one cell to another, preserve proper alkalinity of body fluids and the efficient removal of waste products generated by cellular function.

Because of its propensity to regulate the properties of body fluids, potassium is also critical to proper nerve and muscle function which depend upon the body's ability to transmit electrical impulses.

Sodium and potassium must be in balance for our vital body fluids to function properly. Excessive consumption of salt depletes body potassium levels. Excessive consumption of sugar also depletes potassium reserves.

Alcohol and coffee increase the urinary excretion of potassium; hormone pills and water pills compel the body to retain sodium while excreting potassium, aggravating the sodium/potassium balance.

Chronic symptoms of potassium deficiency are nervous system disorders, diabetes, digestive problems, headaches, allergies and cardiovascular irregularities.

Putting it all together

Dr. Carl Reich, M.D., began making advances in the science of preventing and reversing degenerative diseases through the consumption of large amounts of minerals (and the vitamins known to enhance their efficacy) about the same time Pauling, et al, were advancing the science of mega ascorbate therapy. In the 1950s, Dr. Reich discovered that his patients were able to "cure themselves" of almost all degenerative diseases by consuming several times the RDA of calcium, magnesium, vitamins A and D, and other nutrients. Dr. Reich was the first North American doctor to prescribe "mega doses" of minerals and vitamins to his patients and is considered by many to be the father of preventive medicine.

By the 1980s Dr. Reich had cured thousands, but lost his license for explaining that the consumption of mineral nutrients, such as calcium, could prevent cancer and a host of other diseases. This concept was considered by the American Medical Association (AMA) to be "too simple."

During the 1990s, in spite of the AMA, other medical doctors were discovering that calcium, along with other supplements, could indeed reverse cancer and the symptoms of other chronic diseases.

ASH developed Master Formula II as a way to supply the body with bioavailable therapeutic doses of calcium, magnesium, potassium and vitamins A and D.