Is Magnesium Magic?
Since 2020 there have been over 16,000 publications to PubMed containing the keyword “magnesium”, over 300 of them are randomized-control trials. Magnesium effects dozens of processes in our body including our cardiovascular, reproductive, neurological, and respiratory systems.
Magnesium (Mg) has long been on my short-list of supplements just about everyone can benefit from — along with creatine and Vitamin D. Last year I published an article about optimizing testosterone with Magnesium and Vitamin D, and that protocol has worked out very well for me. I’m 36 and my total testosterone is over 1,100.
A recent publication titled “Dietary magnesium intake is related to larger brain volumes and lower white matter lesions with notable sex differences” concluded that:
“Higher dietary Mg intake is related to better brain health in the general population, and particularly in women. (1)”
Reference ranges and dose-effects are always important in these discussions to note how realistic or feasible a certain outcome is. Here, the authors note “… our models indicate that compared to somebody with a normal Mg intake (~350 mg/day), somebody in the top quartile of Mg intake (> 550 mg/day) would be predicted to have (decreased brain aging by one year at age 55)… a 41% increase in Mg intake may lead to significantly better brain health, which would also be expected to contribute to greater preservation of cognitive ability…”
The authors also note that a Mg intake of > 196 mg / day “has been associated with a 37% decrease in future risk of dementia.” That’s fascinating given that about half of Americans are deficient in Mg (2).
The RDA for Mg is around 300-400 mg / day (3). This is, again, where a discussion of “need” versus “benefit” comes in. That is, I may “need” 4.5 mg/Kg/day to not be dysfunctional (4), but I may get a therapeutic effect, or “benefit”, all the way up to 10 mg/Kg/day (5, 6).
Similar therapeutic Mg reference ranges (as for testosterone and brain matter) have also been reported to benefit ADHD symptoms — ~7,000 IU Vitamin D per day + 6 mg/Kg Mg per day (7).
For Example:
80 Kg Person = 175 lbs.
4.5 mg/Kg/day = 360 mg Mg / day (minimum
6 mg/Kg/day = 480 mg / day (brain boost)
10 mg/Kg/day = 800 mg Mg / day (optimal)
There was a fascinating study in 2021 titled “Effect of magnesium and vitamin B6 supplementation on mental health and quality of life in stressed healthy adults (8)” that produced fascinating results in an 8-week trail.
Magnesium supplementation appeared to benefit both anxiety and depression scores with most of the effect occurring within the first 4 weeks of treatment.
Thanks to the graphic above we can see that the experimental group neared the referenced population by week 8 in terms of:
General Health,
Bodily Pain,
Physical Role Functioning, and
Physical Functioning.
Meanwhile, “emotional well being” and “vitality” appear to be transitional quality of life aspects from the somatic domains towards:
Emotional Role Functioning and
Social Functioning.
Food is not medicine. It certainly doesn’t “cure” everything, but it just as surely can help — or at the very least inhibit when it’s awry — our functioning because we as biological organisms cannot abstain from eating. Thus, what we consume (and expose ourselves to) will inevitably effect our development one way or another.
What, then, does 800 mg of Mg look like in real life?
12 large eggs = ~60 mg Mg ($3)
$0.05 / mg = $40 / 800 mg
16 oz ground beef = ~86 mg Mg ($5)
$0.06 / mg = $48 / 800 mg
16 oz canned salmon = ~120 mg Mg ($4)
$0.03 / mg = $24 / 800 mg
4 oz king salmon = 140 mg Mg ($30)
$0.21 / mg = $168 / 800 mg
If I normally eat 3,000 - 4,000 calories / day and that’s around 2 lbs. of beef, 12 eggs, and a few odds and ends, I’m still only looking at ~200 mg of Mg / day. If you can afford king salmon all day, more power to you. For the rest of us, there are reputable supplement brands, and they’re all relatively affordable.
Here are a some notes on the different types of Mg you may find:
Oxide: The cheapest and least bioavailable.
Citrate: More bioavailable than oxide, easier on stomach (diarrhea).
Glycinate: Excellent bioavailability, better for sleep.
Threonate: Good bioavailability, good for brain health.
Malate: Good bioavailability, may help the nervous system and fatigue.
Different forms of Mg will tout different levels of “elemental” Mg and that’s important to note because most of what you’re getting in a supplement is not elemental Mg itself; it’s the acid it’s attached to. That’s of little use though, if your body can’t make use of what’s ingested (e.g. bio-availability).
At the time of this writing I haven’t settled on a brand recommendation, though that may change in the future. For now, I’d recommend starting with the information contained here and a basic Amazon search. Of course, do your due diligence and poke through Labdoor and ConsumerLab while investigating the company’s sourcing and values.