Does magnesium help with sleep?
You’ve likely found yourself on this blog because you’re looking for a remedy to get a better night's sleep. These days, it can seem overwhelming and confusing when trying to decipher how you can improve your sleep. The internet is full of (often conflicting) information when it comes to topics like this.
To provide you some clarity, we’ll deep dive into magnesium and pick apart why some have touted it as the ‘sleep-promoting’ and ‘stress-reducing’ essential mineral. If you’ve ever experienced trouble falling (or staying) asleep, you may be surprised to learn of the role this mineral has on both our sleep and overall health.
Read on as we discover the relationship between magnesium and a good night’s sleep.
What is magnesium?
Magnificent magnesium - what would we do without it? Magnesium is essential for your health. In fact, it’s used in over 600 cellular reactions in your body and contributes to the function of your brain, heart and muscles.
Magnesium is one of the most common minerals on earth - one of 24 essential vitamins and minerals we need to maintain our general health and wellbeing. We do not produce magnesium, and hence it is required that we get it from our diet.
For women over the age of 19, it’s recommended to get 310 to 320mg a day. For men, it’s 400 to 420mg. Many do not meet (or come close to meeting) these daily recommendations.
Studies suggest that some of the medical complications that may arise from inadequate magnesium include hypertension, heart arrhythmias, diabetes, osteoporosis, migraines, premature ejaculation, premenstrual syndrome, and insomnia, to list a few. Probably time we paid some more attention to this mineral!
Why does magnesium improve your sleep?
It’s no surprise that in order to fall (and stay) asleep, we need our brain and body to relax. Magnesium aids the body in relaxing by activating the parasympathetic nervous system. This mineral also helps slow down your thinking by regulating GABA - a neurotransmitter that helps your brain power down at night.
Magnesium plays a part in regulating melatonin - the hormone responsible for making you feel sleepy. In doing so, it also helps guide the sleep-wake cycle (circadian rhythm) of your body, improving the consistency of your sleep.
For those who suffer from insomnia and experience difficulty in getting to sleep, early awakening, or feel unrefreshed on waking, magnesium may help. One study revealed that magnesium effectively reduced insomnia in older adults.
Magnesium doesn’t just improve the quantity of your sleep. It might improve the quality of your sleep too. Deep and restful sleep is essential to helping us function at our best.
This study found that for older adults magnesium improves sleep time and efficiency. Participants also exhibited higher levels of both renin and melatonin - two hormones that help regulate our sleep.
How can I get more magnesium in my diet?
Magnesium deficiency is common among adults, so if you’re looking to get some more magnesium from your diet you can try incorporating some of the following foods:
Dark leafy greens
Avocados
Seeds and nuts, including almonds and cashews, sunflower and sesame seeds
Legumes
Tofu
Whole grains
Salmon, mackerel and halibut
Bananas
It is difficult to get too much magnesium from your diet. As with most vitamins and minerals, what your body doesn't absorb, it will usually dispose of. However, you may encounter problems if you take too much of a magnesium supplement. That’s why you should always consult your doctor before taking any supplement.
Typical warning signs you may be getting too much magnesium include nausea, abdominal cramping and diarrhea.
What are the other benefits of taking magnesium?
Getting consistently better sleep can do wonders for your health. And magnesium also provides a number of other mental and physical benefits.
Lower stress and anxiety
According to some studies, low levels of magnesium may have a link with higher levels of anxiety. This is thought to occur as magnesium plays a role in regulating your stress response system.
Bone health
Magnesium plays a role in maintaining our bone health. This becomes more apparent with age, as studies suggest higher magnesium intake is linked to greater bone density.
Cardiovascular health
One of the critical ways magnesium assists us is related to our muscle function - including our heart. Magnesium promotes healthy heart function and rhythm. It may even reduce mortality in people who are considered high risk for cardiovascular disease.
Improved athletic performance
Given magnesium plays such a critical role in our muscle function and energy production, there are suggestions that it could improve athletic performance. Some studies have found that increased magnesium can result in increases in endurance performance and decreased oxygen consumption during sub-maximal exercise.
What’s the difference between melatonin and magnesium?
Given melatonin and magnesium both play a role in sleep and are part of healthy bodily functions, they can often be treated as similar. However, magnesium and melatonin affect your sleep in different ways - given the former is a mineral and the latter is a hormone.
Melatonin controls the sleep-wake cycle of your brain, while magnesium generally calms your nerves. Taking supplements of either can be dangerous without proper consultation given no long-term safety data exists and the optimum dose is yet to be determined.
The bottom line
Getting enough quality sleep is critical to your general health and wellbeing. Along with exercise and a healthy diet, try to incorporate and maintain good sleep habits to boost your health and wellbeing for the long-term.
If you’re experiencing persistent disruptions to your sleep, consult with a pharmacist or trusted medical professional to discuss possible solutions.
Any advice provided in this content is of a general nature and does not take into account your objectives, health or needs. The information in this post is not intended to substitute medical advice, diagnosis or treatment and should not be exclusively relied on to diagnose or manage a medical condition. You need to consider the appropriateness of any information or general advice we give you, having regard to your personal situation, before acting on our advice or purchasing any over-the-counter sleep product.