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The 8% Newsletter

Happy Monday 8%ers!

Let’s talk about something thrilling, mineral absorption. Wait, don’t leave. This is important. You can eat the cleanest diet, take all the supplements, and still be running on nutritional fumes if your body isn’t absorbing minerals properly. Take magnesium, our favorite mineral. Your body generously takes in about 30 to 40% of it. Now let’s take chromium. Well here it’s a laughable 2.5%. That’s like getting a paycheck and realizing the bank kept most of it. So, how do we get the best mineral bang for our dietary buck?

Let’s break it down.

GI Tract and Absorption

Our GI tract has many mechanisms that it uses to make sure that we get the most out of the food that we eat. Picture your very primal self many years ago. Food was scarce and your body needed to get the most out of it. You could say that effective absorption of your nutrients was key to your survival. Your GI tract has a range of strategies to get minerals into your system, but they don’t always work in your favor. Some minerals absorb easily and others are stubborn, clinging to food components like a toddler gripping their favorite toy. So if you’re still with us on this, let’s meet our mineral absorption contenders. 


Ionic Minerals

Most minerals don’t exist in a pure, absorbable state when they enter your body. Instead, they are bound to other molecules: proteins, fiber, or larger compounds. This remains the case for almost every nutrient and micronutrient we eat in our day to day life. Before they can be absorbed, they need to be dissolved or ionized, essentially stripped down to their most bioavailable form before ionic channels can move them into our bloodstream.

What absorption (aka bioavailability) really comes down to is what molecule a mineral is bound to. This makes absorption better, worse, or none at all. Take fiber, which binds to minerals like magnesium and calcium. As we already know from our Fiber newsletter, we can’t absorb it ourselves, meaning that whichever mineral the fiber is bound to becomes useless because it will be excreted along with the fiber. Conversely, some minerals get a boost when paired with amino acids that your gut welcomes with open arms.

This is why ionic minerals have a significant advantage. They are already in a form that can be immediately absorbed without needing to be broken down further. But even then, there are ways to maximize their effectiveness.


Improve Ionic Mineral Absorption

Since OmniBlue minerals are already in ionic form (or quickly convert to it as with our powdered minerals), they are primed for absorption. However, you can still make critical mistakes that reduce their effectiveness. Here’s how to get the most out of them:

  1. Be mindful of the nutrients you mix with OmniBlue: These two are notorious for interfering with absorption, especially when it comes to magnesium. Calcium directly competes for the same transport pathways, while fiber binds minerals and escorts them out of the body before they can be absorbed. 

  2. Proper Dilution (this is the secret!): We say this constantly, and for good reason. The concentration of minerals in your gut directly affects absorption. At lower dilutions (higher concentrations) of OmniBlue, ion channels get overwhelmed, and absorption rates drop significantly. Ionic minerals enter the body through ion channels in the intestinal lining, but these channels have limits. If too many minerals are consumed at once, two problems arise: first, the channels get overwhelmed, reducing overall absorption; second, because ions regulate water movement across membranes, taking a concentrated dose can pull water into the intestines, leading to a laxative effect. Now this is a pretty neat thing for those that battle constipation, and want a natural aid that works especially well. But for the people in the crowd looking to replenish their body’s minerals solely, well it isn’t ideal. 

    For best absorption, the optimal dilution is 16oz of water per serving. This dilution has been tested and found to be the most effective for remineralizing the person who is taking them, all without triggering unwanted digestive effects.


Chelation: A Different Approach

Chelation is another strategy used to improve mineral absorption. This process involves chemically binding minerals to amino acids or organic molecules to make them more bioavailable. The idea is that since amino acids are easily absorbed, the minerals attached to them get a free ride into the bloodstream. It’s a clever approach, but it comes with trade-offs:

  1. Low Mineral Diversity: Because they require binding to a carrier molecule, you can only get one mineral at a time in meaningful amounts. And, as you know, minerals work as a team in our metabolic pathways. This is a problem because minerals work in synergy, focusing too much on one mineral can create deficiencies in others. If you’re interested in learning more about how minerals work as a team, visit our Science page on our website. 

    Unfortunately, more often than not we pile on macro minerals like calcium, magnesium, sodium, potassium and chloride, while neglecting the other equally essential trace minerals (selenium, chromium, zinc, …). A magnesium glycinate supplement can effectively correct a magnesium deficiency, but if other deficiencies exist (as they almost always do), addressing just one does little to restore overall balance. The body operates as a system, once you reach sufficiency in one mineral, any excess becomes ineffective unless the rest are also properly maintained.

  2. Better Absorption: The idea of superior absorption isn’t as straightforward as it seems. While magnesium glycinate is more readily absorbed than malate, citrate, or oxide, the same doesn’t necessarily hold true for ionic minerals. Their absorption depends largely on timing and, most importantly, dilution. When properly diluted and taken under the right conditions, ionic minerals can rival and even surpass the absorption efficiency of chelated forms.

 

So, Which is Better?

The answer, as with most things in nutrition, is it depends. If you know exactly which mineral you’re deficient in and want to target that one nutrient, a chelated mineral will do the trick. But in reality, most people have multiple, subclinical mineral deficiencies. If you focus too much on one, you risk creating an imbalance elsewhere.

This is why ionic minerals like OmniBlue’s are often the superior choice. They provide a full spectrum of minerals in their most bioavailable form, ensuring that your body gets what it needs. They also allow for flexible dosing and better absorption when properly diluted.

At the end of the day, the best mineral supplement is the one your body actually absorbs. If you’re investing in your health, make sure you’re not just consuming minerals, but actually using them.