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Do you feel tired and listless? Do you feel tension in your throat, neck, and shoulders? Are your eyelids twitching? Do your calf muscles send shooting pains up your legs? If so, you may have a magnesium deficiency. Other symptoms sometimes include cardiac arrhythmia, nausea, vomiting, numbness, migraines, and tension headaches.
The symptoms of magnesium deficiency vary because the mineral is a multi-tasker. “It has its fingers in every pie, from the metabolism of bones to muscles, nerves, teeth, and protein synthesis,” explains Dr. Elisabeth Rauh, nutritionist and head physician at Germany’s Schön Klinik Bad Staffelstein. In fact, magnesium alone is involved in more than 600 enzyme reactions.
Still, a magnesium deficiency is not always immediately obvious: “There is not one single recognition signal,” Rauh says.
Magnesium deficiency is common
Magnesium deficiency is also not rare. In a comprehensive study, one in ten adults in Germany alone was found to have a significant magnesium deficiency, also known as hypomagnesemia. Among 18 to 24-year-old women, a deficiency was diagnosed in one in five women.
Magnesium is the fourth most important electrolyte in the human body. The mineral plays a leading role in energy metabolism and helps to ensure that stimuli for muscle tension are transmitted correctly. It is also important for bone formation, heart rhythm, vascular tone and blood pressure. However, the body cannot produce magnesium itself; it must be absorbed through food. Magnesium deficiency can significantly increase the risk of developing type II diabetes.
Your daily requirement of magnesium
According to studies, many people in the United States consume less magnesium than is recommended for the healthy population. An estimated value of around 400 milligrams for healthy adult men and around 300 milligrams for women is recommended as the daily requirement.
So, is it simply a matter of consuming enough magnesium to prevent a deficiency? The answer is tricky, as insufficient intake is only one possible aspect. “Deficiency is rarely caused by dietary habits, but rather as a result of impaired absorption in the intestine or increased excretion via the kidneys,” notes Rauh. “Intestinal and kidney diseases, chronic alcohol consumption or certain medications can influence absorption or excretion.”
Foods high in magnesium
That said, it is worth making sure you’re consuming enough of this all-important mineral. Luckily, traces of magnesium can be found in many foods, and healthy people can easily meet their requirements through diet alone. “Magnesium can be found almost everywhere in a balanced diet,” says Rauh. “You can’t avoid it.”
Sunflower seeds, for example, are particularly high in magnesium, with 100 grams containing the recommended daily dose of 300 to 400 milligrams.
Cashew nuts, which contain around 270 milligrams per 100 grams, also contain a lot of magnesium. “The content is particularly high in grains, nuts, pulses, fruit, and vegetables like spinach, kale, and broccoli. Mineral water is also a source of magnesium,” says Rauh.
It’s important to note, however, that many vegetables, fruits, and seeds lose much of their magnesium content when cooked or peeled because the valuable mineral is often found in or near the skin. Whole grain “brown” rice, for example, contains around 160 milligrams of magnesium, whereas hulled or “white” rice contains almost none.
Getting magnesium through diet
What to do? The most important thing: Eat a healthy, varied, and balanced diet with sufficient fiber. This will generally provide the body with the required daily dose and prevent a magnesium deficiency.
Rauh recommends practicing a healthy lifestyle, too: “If you want to do something for your health, you should exercise, make time to eat regularly, and enrich your diet with nuts and fruit.” She advises against simply taking magnesium supplements to compensate for a “careless lifestyle.” In her opinion, long-term use of magnesium supplements should be discussed with your doctor.
Taking magnesium throughout the day
Anyone who takes magnesium supplements should not take more than 250 milligrams per day, and should ideally spread the intake out over two to three doses throughout the day. Magnesium supplements should also be taken in conjunction with regular exercise and a balanced diet.
But what about other popular magnesium products? Rauh is somewhat critical of those, especially magnesium oil: “There are no evidence-based studies that prove that magnesium can be absorbed through the skin,” she says.
Of course, some people swear by foot baths or sprays as a guard against magnesium deficiency. But does any of the magnesium actually end up in the body? It’s hard to say for sure: “The effectiveness of a product depends on many factors and it’s still unclear how well these products work,” Rauh emphasizes.
If you like magnesium oils, bath products, and sprays, go ahead and use them—it probably doesn’t hurt. Just remember, there isn’t much scientific proof of their benefits, so it’s best to follow the tried-and-true wellness basics of a healthy diet, adequate sleep, and sufficient exercise to cover all your bases.
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