Best Time To Take Magnesium And Other Benefits - Greatist

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GreatistMagnesium: Does Time of Day Matter?

Medically reviewed by Meredith Goodwin, MD, FAAFP — Written by Anna Lee Beyer — Updated on August 6, 2024

Ways to get magnesium
Combining with food
Mixing with medication
Magnesium in food
How much you need
Magnesium deficiency
More benefits

Learn why magnesium is essential, the best time to take it, different forms, side effect prevention, and tips for better absorption to reach your daily health goals.

Magnesium is a mineral you legit can’t miss. It’s vital to healthy muscle and nerve function, blood sugar control, and blood pressure regulation. It also helps build protein, bone, and DNA. The thing is, most peeps don’t get enough through their daily diet.

Here’s how to hit your daily magnesium goals and what time to take it in.

Magnesium fast facts

If better sleep is your goal, take it closer to bedtime.
Take it with a meal or snack if you notice tummy troubles.
Magnesium works best if you take it the same time every day.
Magnesium doesn’t mix well with some meds and supplements, so space out timing between taking pills.

The best ways to slay your magnesium

Try a magnesium massage

You can opt for a topical product made with magnesium (usually magnesium citrate). Peeps claim these products can help with muscle relaxation, which is why they’re so popular post-workout or before bedtime. There are lots of magnesium lotions, gels, or sprays you can try out.

PSA: In a 2017 review of studies on topical magnesium products, researchers concluded there was not yet enough evidence that a therapeutic amount of the mineral could be absorbed through skin. So while the results aren’t proven, it can’t hurt to try!

Take a mineral soak

Epsom salt, bath flakes, magnesium sulfate… Whatever you call them, they’re a common treatment for sore muscles. Just dissolve them in a tub of steamy, hot water for an uber soothing experience.

Like with the topical treatments mentioned above, it’s not clear how much magnesium you can actually absorb through your skin. But a relaxing bath is always a good idea 🛁.

Popping rocks

Magnesium is available in multivitamin pills. It’s commonly combined with other supplements like calcium. You can also get it on its own in tablet, capsule, powder, or liquid form.

The types of magnesium are most easy to absorb are:

magnesium citrate
magnesium lactate
magnesium chloride
magnesium aspartate

Protect your tummy, supplement with a snack

Take take your magnesium with a meal or snack to prevent an upset tummy. Diarrhea and nausea are common side effects if you take the supplements on an empty stomach (especially if they’re a higher dose).

Beware interaction with other meds

Magnesium supplements can interact with some prescriptions, supplements, and other medications. Here’s what to look out for:

Bisphosphonates. These osteoporosis drugs don’t absorb as well if you take them alongside magnesium.
Antibiotics. Magnesium can also affect the absorption of antibiotics. Def don’t take these two at the same time.
Diuretics. These can increase or decrease the amount of magnesium your body gets rid of when you pee.
Acid reflux meds. Long-term use of acid reflux or peptic ulcer prescriptions can lead to low magnesium levels.
Zinc. High doses of zinc can mess with your body’s ability to absorb and regulate magnesium.

When to ask a doctor

Talk to your doctor about how to space out your medications and magnesium supplements. They can help you find the right balance.

Getting magnesium from food

You should try to get your magnesium from actual food as often as possible. Nom-noms are tastier than pills anyway, right?

Here’s the all-star list for eating your magnesium:

fortified cereal
milk and yogurt
soy products like tofu
peas, beans, and seeds
nuts like almonds, and cashews
whole grains like brown rice and millet
green leafy vegetables (think spinach, Popeye)
fruits like bananas, dried apricots, and avocados

What you need to know about magnesium supplements

Here’s how much magnesium you actually need on the daily (in milligrams), according to the National Institutes of Health Office of Dietary Supplements.

Age	Recommended amount
birth to 6 months	30 mg
infants 7–12 months	75 mg
children 1–3 years	80 mg
children 4–8 years	130 mg
children 9–13 years	240 mg
teen boys 14–18 years	410 mg
teen girls 14–18 years	360 mg
men	400–420 mg
women	310–320 mg
pregnant teens	400 mg
pregnant adults	350–360 mg
breastfeeding teens	360 mg
breastfeeding adults	310–320 mg

FYI: You might have a harder time getting enough magnesium if you have a gastrointestinal (GI) disease, type 2 diabetes, or alcoholism.

If you’re not hitting your daily target, you have lots of supplement options. The three most popular are:

Magnesium glycinate

A combo of magnesium and glycine. Supplements in this form are typically used to support restful sleep and muscle relaxation or help with anxiety.

Magnesium citrate

This is a mix of magnesium and citric acid. It’s a laxative and can be taken for constipation.

Magnesium oil

Don’t let the name fool you! This mixture (in spray form) of magnesium chloride and water isn’t really an oil! They’re totes popular now for relieving pain or inducing sleep.

Missing magnesium can lead to trouble

Symptoms of magnesium deficiency include:

nausea
fatigue
vomiting
weakness
loss of appetite

Advanced deficiency may cause numbness, tingling, muscle cramps, seizures, or abnormal heart rhythms.

Low magnesium has also been associated with these chronic diseases:

Cardiovascular disease. A 2018 review concluded that higher magnesium intake can protect from cardiovascular disease ❤️.
Insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes. A small 2018 study found magnesium supplements improved insulin resistance and glucose control in participants with type 2 diabetes.
Migraines. Some migraines can be linked to low magnesium levels. There’s even some evidence that magnesium supplements can relieve migraine symptoms.

More potential benefits of magnesium

The science is still limited on some of these topics, but there’s hope that paying attention to magnesium levels could impact health in other ways:

There’s evidence that magnesium supplements could help with dysmenorrhea (period cramps), PMS, and menstrual migraines.
Promising research shows it could help with depression.
Higher magnesium levels may improve mineral density in bones and prevent osteoporosis.
People with Alzheimer’s disease tend to have lower magnesium levels, but the connection is unclear. Scientists are looking at how magnesium impacts the brains of laboratory animals.
Studies indicate that many people with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) have low magnesium levels. Supplementation may help.

tl;dr

Magnesium is a vital nutrient that your body needs for important functions and preventing illness. Most folks don’t get enough in their daily diet so you might want to take a supplement. Our top timing tip for magnesium is to take it consistently, at the same time every day.

10 sourcescollapsed

Chiu HY, et al. (2016). Effects of intravenous and oral magnesium on reducing migraine: A meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26752497/
ELDerawi WA, et al. (2018). The effects of oral magnesium supplementation on glycemic response among type 2 diabetes patients. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30587761/
Gröber U, et al. (2015). Magnesium in prevention and therapy. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26404370/
Gröber U, et al. (2017). Myth or reality—Transdermal magnesium? https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5579607/
Kirkland AE, et al. (2018). The role of magnesium in neurological disorders. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29882776/
Magnesium: Fact sheet for consumers. (2020). https://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/Magnesium-Consumer/
National Institutes of Health Office of Dietary Supplements. Magnesium: Fact sheet for health professionals. (2020). https://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/Magnesium-HealthProfessional/
Parazzini F, et al. (2017). Magnesium in the gynecological practice: a literature review. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28392498/
Rosique-Esteban N, et al. (2018). Dietary magnesium and cardiovascular disease: A review with emphasis in epidemiological studies. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5852744/
U.S. National Library of Medicine staff. Magnesium in diet. (2019).https://medlineplus.gov/ency/article/002423.htm

FEEDBACK:

Medically reviewed by Meredith Goodwin, MD, FAAFP — Written by Anna Lee Beyer — Updated on August 6, 2024

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