Magnesium supplements adverts everywhere - are they worth it?

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Xaavuza@reddit

They're quite good for restless legs and sleep.

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carnage2006@reddit

The other half has suffered from restless legs in the evening driving her potty for absolutely ages, started on the magnesium once a day and hasn't had any issues since.

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PlentyEggplant4497@reddit

This episode of What’s Up Docs is about magnesium, give it a listen: https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m002j6z4?partner=uk.co.bbc&origin=share-mobile

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Basic-Pudding-3627@reddit

I've tried the glycinate, enough for 3 months. Never helped sleep or recovery. Still woke up in the night, still woke up tired. Stopped taking them.

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Acrobatic-Ad584@reddit

I take mag. citrate for sleeping, it seems to work

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Basic-Pudding-3627@reddit

Glycinate is for sleep. Citrate is for muscle recovery.

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Acrobatic-Ad584@reddit

Oh well the Citrate works, the power of the placebo eh! And it is cheaper than glycinate ha ha

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_diamondgray@reddit

I've been on this for a week taking it in the evening, plus a small dose of creatine in the morning. Definitely feeling more awake\alert through the day. Still waking at 4am. Will see the course though.

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GetCapeFly@reddit

I found it doesn’t help falling asleep or staying asleep but (according to the Apple Watch) I do consistently get more deep sleep when I’ve taken it 2 hours before bed.

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mrCOFFEEPOWER@reddit

yeah those ads are everywhere lately. most of it’s just marketing, but magnesium can actually help depending on the form. magnesium glycinate is good for sleep and relaxation since it’s easy on the stomach and absorbs well. magnesium malate or citrate are more for energy and muscle recovery. you don’t need fancy blends though, just pick one that fits your goal. If your goal is using mag for sleep i’ve been using som sleep lately, heard about it on reddit. it’s got magnesium and a tiny bit of melatonin, but the dose is small enough that it doesn’t cause the weird side effects some people get from higher doses. it’s a little pricey, but it works well.

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ThePodd222@reddit

Started taking them this week along with potassium for muscle cramps and they've either definitely helped, or it's a placebo/coincidence that the cramps have eased significantly. Not noticed any difference with sleep, but I don't tend to struggle with that anyway.

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pgnlzbth@reddit

I take gummies from H&B with glycinate and citrate and some other things. They’re called ‘calm’ and I feel the benefit, I believe.

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charmacharmz@reddit

ive been taking magnesium 3 in 1 for about a year now (nutrition geeks).

definitely helps with getting me to sleep / sleep quality. haven't noticed any other changes but i'd recommend it for sleep.

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vipros42@reddit

Same stuff, same experience! I have made dreams anyway so can't say whether magnesium does anything with that

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SlickAstley_@reddit

I found it helps with actually being sleepy at night.

Also gives you mad dreams for about 10 weeks (until I guess you build a tolerance)

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charmacharmz@reddit

yeah completely agree. i take it about an hour before i want to go to bed.

no grogginess in the morning like nytol etc.

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Lanky-Amphibian1554@reddit

They did help me through a rough patch, however, you do have to be very careful taking them for any length of time.

Everyone will tell you that certain kinds of magnesium supplements give you diarrhea and others don’t. My experience is that they all gave me diarrhea.

Once, during lunch at an important public-facing meeting, I ate an apple. I was so used to dealing with diarrhea by then, I took it completely in stride. It’s not good to get to that stage.

I’d been taking the supplements long enough that it was in the back of my mind, so it was a while before I realized that the worsening and intractable bowel problems I was having, were caused by the magnesium supplements.

I stopped taking them and within a few days, I no longer had « food intolerances » or « could this be IBS » or any of that.

I now wouldn’t touch magnesium supplements with a ten foot pole. I’m happy to report that I can finally eat an apple without incident. But if I so much as look at a magnesium supplement - even the correct kind, even the tiniest dose - kablooie.

If I have any muscle fatigue or aches - which is rarely to never - I might use some spray magnesium on my skin at bedtime. I don’t know if it works, but it smells nice.

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Knightartist86@reddit

For me personally, definitely yes. Magnesium 'glycinate' (citrate and oxide is more used for constipation) I've been taking it with B12 and Vit D because of a deficiency diagnosis.

I can instantly tell when it enters the system fully, I get such an awesome brain calming effect, and lifts my mood. I only take 2 a day which is only about 51% of the daily recommended intake but I feel its enough.

I've no idea if its effective for everyone or not.

I just went to amazon and bought the cheapest i could find, works great for me.

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zephyrthewonderdog@reddit

ZMA tablets (zinc, magnesium and vitamin B6)definitely helped with my insomnia years ago. Recommended them to someone else at work who couldn’t sleep. Didn’t see him for a few weeks then he came up and said ‘those actually fucking worked’. So that’s two anecdotal reviews.

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Devilonmytongue@reddit

I’ve found magnesium glycinate to help my sleep a lot. The different kinds do different things. And one of them can give you tummy troubles.

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escapingfromelba@reddit

What's up Doc on BBC Sounds debunks this fad.

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neilm1000@reddit

Yes and no: for me it has been beneficial but I have some specific issues.

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Repulsive_State_7399@reddit

I sleep better when I remember to take it. Whether that's a placebo effect or if it genuinely does something, I have no idea, but I'm going to keep taking it.

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Kickkickkarl@reddit

I was told by someone that we all have a lack of magnesium in us so what I did was just buy magnesium tables from Poundland and snapped on in half an have half daily.

I think I genuinely do notice a difference but then again it could be the weather, time of year etc. Supplements have always been cheap but the internet likes to push people into buying the expensive ones and will be telling you you'll be dieing without taking these.

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Difficult_Bad1064@reddit

I'm not getting flooded with adverts but I believe magnesium is one of the few recommended vitamin supplements, along with vitamin D, as most people (in the UK) don't get enough of either.

I take magnesium glycinate to help with restless leg syndrome. Not sure if it works or not as I'm not very consistent with it.

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sophikles@reddit

I would always take a blood test before starting to take any supplements. Yes, they cost if done privately, but at least you'll know what you actually need, rather than blindly taking supplements. Especially those super expensive ones that are only expensive because of marketing and aren't any better than, say, Boots brand.

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Sad-Garage-2642@reddit

I take glycinate in the evening, L-threonate in the morning.

Indefinitely notice a better quality of sleep. It doesn't make getting to sleep any easier, there aren't any sedative effects, but I wake up feeling like I've had a great sleep

And the L-threonate genuinely helps me stay focused and on track throughout the day

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FilDaFunk@reddit

If you don't have enough magnesium those could be the signs. It might be due to any other number of reasons.

Don't listen to people who are trying to sell you something.

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