Can Magnesium Really Help You Sleep? We Asked 2 MDs

Within the realm of dietary supplements, magnesium can feel like a relatively protected solution. It truly is a mineral that is by natural means found in foodstuff like vegetables, grains, and legumes, soon after all. Even the purported advantages of magnesium — improved rest, much less worry — make it seem like a quite small-possibility addition to your wellness schedule. But can magnesium seriously support you snooze? And does magnesium have any aspect effects that you really should know about?

Magnesium does have soothing attributes that can serene muscle mass (and psychological) rigidity, and a lot of people swear by it as a slumber aid. But some professionals say its advantages usually are not rather as sturdy as nutritional supplement corporations would have you consider. What is actually far more, the mineral just isn’t something you can properly choose huge portions of you have to know the appropriate dose. In addition, health supplements use unique types of magnesium, and sure forms of magnesium can have facet consequences that you definitely want to stay away from.

If you’re fascinated in making use of magnesium to help you slumber, study on. We requested two MDs to split down every little thing to know about working with magnesium for rest.

Specialists Showcased in This Report

Alon Avidan, MD, MPH, is a professor of neurology at the David Geffen School of Medication at UCLA and the director of UCLA’s Snooze Disorders Heart.

Rajkumar Dasgupta, MD, is an associate professor of medical medication at USC’s Keck School of Drugs and an American Academy of Sleep Medication spokesperson.

Will Using a Magnesium Supplement Boost Your Sleep?

Magnesium, an essential mineral that performs a job in a lot more than 300 different procedures in the human body, has obtained reputation as a rest assist for the reason that it’s regarded to simplicity muscle mass pressure and develop a normal feeling of rest. Magnesium’s rest advantages usually are not as legit as it could appear to be on the wellness side of TikTok, nonetheless. In simple fact, specialists agree that magnesium isn’t really for all people.

“The data so considerably [about magnesium’s benefits as a sleep aid] is weak at very best,” Alon Avidan, MD, MPH, a professor of neurology at the David Geffen College of Medicine at UCLA and the director of UCLA’s Snooze Ailments Center, tells PS. A lot of of the scientific studies that have been done were being “not accomplished with the strongest medical analysis,” he clarifies, which is problematic when “a large placebo reaction is actually common.” These assessments look at the Sleeplessness Severity Index, which is acknowledged to be extremely subjective. In Dr. Avidan’s check out, a robust sleep analyze would include things like near checking for about 6 months, and no reports he’s witnessed have actually done that.

In 1 2021 systematic evaluate and meta-investigation of three randomized command trials released in the journal BMC Complementary Drugs and Therapies, scientists discovered that grownups fell asleep about 17 minutes more rapidly and slept 16 minutes for a longer period when they took a magnesium supplement in comparison to a placebo having said that, the research authors take note that this time was not statistically significant, and that “the quality of literature is substandard for medical professionals to make nicely-informed recommendations on usage of oral magnesium for older grown ups with insomnia.”

In a 2024 systematic assessment of 15 studies that seemed into magnesium’s has an effect on on insomnia and stress and was released in the journal Cureus, researchers concluded that a lack of consistency in the knowledge and the little quantity of contributors in most studies created drawing firm conclusions difficult.

That explained, the review authors wrote, “Supplied the usually positive effects across experiments, the preponderance of preclinical proof, and small facet effects, having said that, supplemental magnesium is very likely handy in the procedure of delicate stress and insomnia, particularly in these with small magnesium status at baseline.” The 2021 research also indicated that because magnesium is affordable and accessible, the proof may perhaps be sufficient to assistance seeking a minimal dose (less than 1 gram, up to 3 moments per working day most scientific tests seem to max out at 729 mg) for insomnia.

Magnesium has also been verified to aid men and women with restless leg syndrome (RLS), which will make the complement a viable possibility for individuals whose sleep difficulties stem from their urge to go at night. This features nonclinical circumstances, like involuntarily kicking in your sleep. If you have RLS or if not sense restless at night time, Dr. Avidan notes that having magnesium about 20 to 30 minutes prior to mattress may possibly help.

Does Magnesium Have Any Aspect Results?

It does — and the most frequent a single is GI upset. A variety of magnesium recognized as magnesium citrate is a typical component in laxatives, since it is really so powerful at managing constipation. If you you should not have constipation, although, it can induce bloating, belly soreness, or diarrhea. And Dr. Avidan suggests if you presently have any gastrointenstinal troubles, magnesium could likely exacerbate them. Magnesium glycinate is meant to be gentler on the intestine, but even that taken in far too substantial of a dose can upset the abdomen.

Because nutritional supplements are not effectively controlled, you also have to take into consideration the possibility that the magnesium dietary supplement you take could have other elements in it with their individual side outcomes. “[Magnesium supplements] products could be marketed and offered with no Fda acceptance and may possibly contain perilous facet results or adverse drug reactions,” states Rajkumar Dasgupta, MD, associate professor of scientific medicine at USC’s Keck Faculty of Medicine and an American Academy of Sleep Medication spokesperson. Dr. Dasgupta adds that, for this explanation, he encourages any person who wants to start a supplement to discuss it with their doctor initially.

Additionally, if your sleeplessness is significant, the very best issue you can do is chat to your primary care health practitioner. “We you should not want persons to be self-medicating,” Dr. Avidan states — since there’s a chance that by merely masking your signs with supplements, you’re leaving a additional major affliction, like sleep apnea, untreated. So, make that appointment.

Maya Garabedian is a PS contributor.

Mirel Zaman is the well being and health director at PS. She has nearly 15 many years of practical experience working in the wellbeing and wellness place, crafting and modifying articles about fitness, general overall health, psychological well being, interactions and sex, food stuff and nourishment, astrology, spirituality, loved ones and parenting, culture, and news.