The University of Maryland Medical Center states that most Americans do not get enough magnesium in their diets. This important nutrient is required for healthy bones and teeth and is used in enzyme metabolism, energy production and regulating metabolism of other nutrients in the body. The variety of foods containing magnesium is vast. It is common to list the amount of magnesium in milligrams per 100g of food weight.
Nuts, Seeds and Grain
According to the website Botanical-Online, which specializes in mineral and nutrient information, nuts, seeds and grain are generally rich in magnesium. The most abundant magnesium-containing seeds include cottonseed meal, with 721 mg; pumpkin seed, 534 mg; soybean flour, 369 mg; dried sunflower seeds, 354 mg; and toasted sesame seeds, 346 mg.
Nuts rich in magnesium include almonds, 275 mg to 286 mg; cashew, 258 mg; pinions; 234 mg; Brazil nuts. 225 mg; macadamia nuts, 130 mg; pecans, 121 mg; and peanuts, 102 mg. Grains high in magnesium are amaranth, 266 mg; wild rice, 177 mg; oats, 177 mg; barley, 133 mg; rice, 143 mg; millet, 114 mg; wheat, 93 mg; brown wheat bread, 86 mg; rice bread, 80 mg; rye bread, 40 mg; and oat bread, 35 mg.
Fruits
According to Botanical-Online, fruits are not as rich in magnesium as other plant foods. Examples of the fruits that are most rich in magnesium are fresh figs, 85 mg; dry figs, 69 mg; avocado, 39 mg; dates, 35 mg; kiwis, 30 mg; banana, 29 mg; black currants, 24 mg; pineapples, 14 mg; red currants, 13 mg; papaya, 10 mg; and melon, 11 mg.
Vegetables
Botanical-Online also lists a variety of vegetables that contain magnesium. Although vegetables in general do not have as much magnesium as other plant sources, some plants are more magnesium rich than others. Generally, the dark, leafy green plants have the greatest amounts of magnesium. Examples include spinach, 79 mg and parsley, 60 mg. Examples of other magnesium rich vegetables include okra, 67 mg; carrots, 15 mg; cabbage, 15 mg; eggplants, 14 mg; and cauliflower, 14 mg. Additional plant products high in magnesium include soybean flour, 369 mg; dried beans, 72 mg; tofu, 46 mg; beets, 81 mg; kidney beans, 52 mg; pinto beans, 55 mg; chick peas, 48 mg; and lima beans, 43 mg.
Recommended Dietary Allowance
The Recommended Dietary Allowance or RDA for magnesium is published by the Food and Nutrition Board of the Institute of Medicine of the United States. The RDA represents the amount of a nutrient required by a normal healthy body. For magnesium, the daily RDA for adult males is 400 to 420 mg. For adult females the daily RDA is 310 to 320 mg. For pregnant adult women the daily RDA is 350 to 360 mg. For lactating females the daily RDA is 310 to 320 mg. For all children 1 to 13 years old the daily RDA is 80 to 249 mg.
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