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Can You Take Them Together? Magnesium and Vitamin D nomadnes – Getty Images<\/p>\n
Walking down the vitamin aisle at the drugstore, you’ll see three main types of supplements to choose from. Individual vitamins and minerals, multivitamins, and pairings of a few nutrients that work together in the body. One such pairing is magnesium<\/a> and vitamin D<\/a>. But is it wise to take magnesium and vitamin D together?<\/p>\n What we do know is that they support each other once ingested. \u201cMagnesium is important for the absorption of vitamin D in your body,\u201d said Keri Gans, R.D.N.<\/a>, author of The Small Change Diet. \u201cWithout adequate magnesium levels, vitamin D will work sub-optimally.\u201d<\/p>\n Meet the Experts: Keri Gans, R.D.N.<\/a>, author of The Small Change Diet; Deborah Cohen, D.C.N.,<\/a> an associate professor in the department of clinical and preventive nutrition sciences at Rutgers University School of Health Professions; Jessica Cording, R.D.<\/a>, a registered dietitian and author of The Little Book of Game-Changers; Beth Warren, R.D.N., founder of Beth Warren Nutrition<\/a> and author of Living a Real Life With Real Food.<\/p>\n Read on for everything you need to know about each of these essential nutrients, plus if you should take them together, how much you need of each, and interactions to be aware of.<\/p>\n Benefits of magnesium <\/p>\n Magnesium is a mineral in the body that\u2019s also naturally present in many foods, according to the National Institutes of Health<\/a> (NIH). It\u2019s a cofactor\u2014meaning it\u2019s necessary to create a reaction\u2014in more than 300 enzyme systems that regulate reactions in your body, like protein synthesis, blood sugar control, and blood pressure regulation.<\/p>\n \u201cIn other words, magnesium helps facilitate hundreds of biochemical and metabolic reactions in the body that are important for so many physiologic functions, including muscle contraction, neuromuscular conduction, insulin metabolism, blood pressure, cardiac excitability, vasomotor tone, and nerve transmission,\u201d said Deborah Cohen, D.C.N.,<\/a> an associate professor in the department of clinical and preventive nutrition sciences at Rutgers University School of Health Professions. \u201cBecause it\u2019s important for all of these functions, magnesium plays an important role in both the prevention and treatment of many diseases and conditions.\u201d Magnesium is also required for energy production, the structural development of bone, DNA synthesis, and nerve impulses, according to the NIH.<\/p>\n Given all of this, the possible benefits of magnesium for women<\/a> include better blood sugar management, an improved ability to deal with stress, less anxiety, stronger bones, fewer headaches, and better sleep<\/a>, to name a few.<\/p>\n Benefits of vitamin D<\/p>\n Vitamin D, a.k.a. calciferol, is a fat-soluble vitamin that\u2019s naturally present in some foods and added to others, per the NIH<\/a>. Your body also makes vitamin D when UV rays from the sun hit your skin and trigger vitamin D synthesis.<\/p>\n \u201cVitamin D helps with enhancing calcium absorption, making it important for bone health,\u201d said Jessica Cording, R.D.<\/a>, a registered dietitian and author of The Little Book of Game-Changers. Vitamin D also helps support immune function and \u201creduces the risk of certain health issues,\u201d Cording said. \u201cThere does seem to be a strong correlation between vitamin D and mental health,\u201d she added. Other benefits of vitamin D<\/a> include lower blood sugar<\/a> and improved longevity<\/a>.<\/p>\n Should you take magnesium and vitamin D together?<\/p>\n Once in the body and working, magnesium and vitamin D have some overlap in terms of the processes they affect. \u201cThey are essential to keeping your body healthy by promoting physical and mental health, keeping your bones strong, and even fighting symptoms of anxiety and depression,\u201d said Beth Warren, R.D.N., founder of Beth Warren Nutrition<\/a> and author of Living a Real Life With Real Food. <\/p>\n And, again, your body can\u2019t process vitamin D if your magnesium levels are low. A recent study<\/a> even found that magnesium supplementation helped increase levels of vitamin D in people who were previously low in the vitamin.<\/p>\n So if you want to take magnesium and vitamin D at the same time, Gans said you\u2019re just fine to do that\u2014but taking them apart won’t make them any less functional. \u201cAnd unless you are deficient in one of them, you don\u2019t need to take it at all,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n Warren agreed that you\u2019re OK to take these supplements together. \u201cIt doesn\u2019t counteract their effectiveness,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n How much magnesium do you need?<\/p>\n The recommended daily intake (RDI) of magnesium depends on things like your sex and whether you\u2019re pregnant or breastfeeding. That said, it\u2019s usually recommended<\/a> that adult women get between 310 to 400 milligrams of magnesium a day, while adult men should aim to have 400 to 420 milligrams a day.<\/p>\n If you\u2019re planning to take a magnesium supplement, it\u2019s best to check in with a medical professional about dosage, based on your individual needs, Gans said.<\/p>\n According to the NIH, it\u2019s not common for people to be deficient in magnesium given that your kidneys limit how much magnesium you excrete from your body. However, people with certain health conditions like type 2 diabetes and gastrointestinal diseases may be at risk of magnesium deficiency.<\/p>\n Signs of a magnesium deficiency can include loss of appetite, nausea, vomiting, fatigue, and weakness. As it gets worse, you may have numbness, tingling, muscle contractions and cramps, seizures, personality changes, and abnormal heart rhythms, per the NIH.<\/p>\n How much vitamin D do you need?<\/p>\n Most adult women and men should aim<\/a> to get 15 micrograms or 600 IU of vitamin D a day.<\/p>\n Like magnesium, if you plan to take a vitamin D supplement, it\u2019s best to check in with a medical professional for dosage advice based on your needs.<\/p>\n