If you’re experiencing any form of digestion discomfort - from constipation to diarrhea and everything in between - consider adding Magnesium Citrate to your routine.
Magnesium is an essential mineral that every cell in the body requires to function. It’s crucial to your overall health, assisting in hundreds of cellular processes and promoting a healthy nervous system, brain, and muscle function. Magnesium Citrate is one of the many types of Magnesium and is responsible for the digestive system, which is why it plays a large role in digestive and gut health.
What is Magnesium Citrate?
Magnesium Citrate is composed of equal parts Magnesium and Citric Acid. These supplements help to draw water into your gut, a process that can help speed up the digestive process and ease your intestinal muscles, resulting in regular, easy bowel movements.
Some research suggests that Magnesium Citrate is one of the most bioavailable forms of Magnesium supplementation you can take. This means the supplement may be more easily absorbed into your bloodstream through your gut, allowing it to travel more quickly and efficiently throughout your body for maximum results.
Benefits of Magnesium Citrate
Magnesium is a cofactor, also known as a helper molecule, because it supports over 300 important cellular functions within your body—from your brain to heart, to muscles, to bones.
Taking Magnesium Citrate is like taking Magnesium plus the added bonus of increased support for your gut and digestive system. When your body absorbs Magnesium Citrate, it will help aid in digestion while reaping all the other potential Magnesium Citrate benefits, too.
Promotes healthy digestion
As mentioned above, one of the primary benefits of Magnesium Citrate is to help keep your digestive system and bowel movement on track. Magnesium also assists in the creation of the enzyme used to break down your food in your mouth and stomach.
Regulates the nervous system
Magnesium plays an important part in regulating your central nervous system. It balances the two main types of chemical messengers —glutamate and GABA—responsible for stimulating and calming you throughout the day. When these are in balance, you may feel more awake during the day and more restful at night.
Encourages natural sleep
A magnesium supplement is often taken to help improve sleep and increase overall relaxation. It does this by helping promote your body’s natural production of Melatonin, the sleep hormone. Magnesium can also soothe and relax your muscles to get your body ready for bed.
Improves bone health
About 60% of your body’s Magnesium is stored in your bones, where it plays a large role in bone health and strength. Magnesium works closely with your parathyroid hormones, which are responsible for absorbing and transporting calcium from your bones and throughout your body. Some studies even link Magnesium deficiency to lower bone density.
Promotes heart health
Magnesium can also play a significant role in heart health by helping to stabilize blood pressure so that your heart doesn’t become overworked. Studies have also found that higher Magnesium levels may help prevent heart disease, metabolic disorders, and high blood pressure.
Reduces the intensity and frequency of headaches
Magnesium citrate is known for its potential to help reduce the frequency and severity of headaches. A deficiency in magnesium can lead to the constriction of blood vessels in the brain, which can trigger headaches. By ensuring adequate magnesium levels, one can potentially prevent the onset of these painful episodes.
Potential Side Effects of Magnesium Citrate
The side effects of Magnesium Citrate tend to be minimal as long as you follow the proper dosage instructed by the product or your doctor. But if you consume too much of this supplement, it’s possible to experience a few side effects due to magnesium toxicity.
Consuming excessive amounts of a Magnesium Citrate supplement can lead to:
- Stomach cramps
- Diarrhea
- Nausea
- Excessive gas or bloating
- Vomiting
- Dehydration
- Hypermagnesemia (high levels of Magnesium in the blood)
A certain amount of Magnesium intake can be consumed through food. Plant-based foods like legumes and leafy greens are the biggest sources of dietary magnesium. However, it’s very unlikely that you’ll consume excess amounts of Magnesium-rich foods through your diet - in fact, more than 50% of people in the U.S. experience Magnesium deficiency.
Sign Up, Nerd Out
Get wellness tips, education, and recipes
delivered straight to your inbox.
Get wellness tips, education,
and recipes delivered
straight to your inbox.
How to Use Magnesium Citrate
Magnesium Citrate is one of several subtypes of Magnesium. As mentioned earlier, Magnesium Citrate is considered one of the most bioavailable, meaning your body is able to absorb and use the active ingredient quickly and easily. This makes Magnesium Citrate one of the best and easy-to-use options for supporting your digestion and overall health.
Before taking Magnesium Citrate, you’ll want to understand the different forms available and the best practices for starting this dietary supplement.
Different Forms of Magnesium Citrate
Magnesium Citrate supplements come in three common forms:
- Capsule pills – You can find Magnesium Citrate pills in the vitamin aisle at many grocery stores or online. They are a great resource when you are in need of some digestion support, in addition to providing other long-term health benefits.
- Dissolvable powder – You can also purchase Magnesium Citrate as a water-soluble powder. One of the main Magnesium Citrate powder benefits is that you can mix it into any beverage of choice to give your digestion a boost—blend it into your morning smoothie or stir it into nighttime tea to unwind your mood, your muscles, and your digestive system.
- Liquid – The liquid form of Magnesium Citrate comes in much higher dosage levels and is usually only prescribed in medical settings. For regular supplementation, the forms above are usually better suited to help support your system without going overboard.
Tips for Using Magnesium Citrate
If you’re struggling with digestive issues brought on by fiber deficiency, travel, stress, or other health conditions, Magnesium Citrate may lend some relief. If you have any medical condition, you may want to consult your doctor before starting this supplement to ensure it won’t interfere with other health factors or medications you’re taking.
Other tips for getting the most benefits of Magnesium Citrate include:
- Start small – Start with one or even half of one Magnesium Citrate dose if you are experiencing digestive issues. This can help ease your system back into working smoothly and ensure you don’t experience the side effects we listed earlier.
- Use moderately – Magnesium Citrate tablets and powders can be taken in a daily dose, but you may be able to minimize adverse reactions if you start by taking them just once every few days.
- Take at night – To support your body’s natural “rest and digest” cycle and provide overnight digestive support, consider taking magnesium before bed. This schedule can help support your body’s natural rhythm of digestive function.
Proper Dosage of Magnesium Citrate
Because Magnesium Citrate is a combination of Magnesium and Citric Acid, it’s best to follow the recommended daily Magnesium intake levels when using Magnesium Citrate. For adult men and women, the daily recommended dose of Magnesium and Magnesium Citrate is:
- Men: 400–420 mg/day
- Women: 310–320 mg/day
- Pregnant women: 350–360 mg/day
Incorporate Magnesium Citrate Into Your Bedtime Routine
Because of Magnesium’s critical role in your body and overall health, it’s always important to ensure you have enough of this mineral in your system. For those needing digestive support, Magnesium Citrate is a great option, providing both digestive relief and the other health benefits.
While you can take this supplement any time of the day, the powerful benefits of digestive relief combined with the ability to calm your mind and body make Magnesium Citrate an excellent addition to your bedtime routine. You can stir Magnesium Citrate powder into your evening tea or use a flavored powder for a soothing bedtime drink you’ll look forward to each night.
Magnesi-Om® is our daily Magnesium powder supplement for relaxation, sleep, and regularity. It combines 3 bioavailable forms of Magnesium—Citrate, Gluconate, and Acetyl Taurinate—with L-Theanine for added calm and brain health benefits. Drink 1 tsp in water every night as your relaxing nightcap!
Resources:
National Institutes of Health. Magnesium - Consumer
MedlinePlus. Magnesium Citrate
National Library of Medicine. The Effects of Magnesium Supplementation on Subjective Anxiety and Stress — A Systematic Review
AlgaeCal. The Top Health Benefits of Magnesium
National Library of Medicine. The effect of Magnesium supplementation on primary insomnia in elderly: A double-blind placebo-controlled clinical trial.
Harvard School of Public Health. Magnesium
National Library of Medicine. The Role of Magnesium in Neurological Disorders.
National Library of Medicine. Association between Magnesium intake and depression and anxiety in community-dwelling adults: the Hordaland Health Study
National Library of Medicine. The Effects of Magnesium Supplementation on Subjective Anxiety and Stress — A Systematic Review.
National Library of Medicine. Dietary Magnesium and Cardiovascular Disease: A Review with Emphasis in Epidemiological Studies.
Magnesium research. Mg citrate found more bioavailable than other Mg preparations in a randomised, double-blind study.
