{"id":353747,"date":"2026-03-29T13:49:08","date_gmt":"2026-03-29T13:49:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/353747\/"},"modified":"2026-03-29T13:49:08","modified_gmt":"2026-03-29T13:49:08","slug":"magnesium-supplements-why-is-everyone-talking-about-taking-magnesium-3","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/353747\/","title":{"rendered":"Magnesium Supplements: Why Is Everyone Talking About Taking Magnesium?"},"content":{"rendered":"

This story is from Manual, GQ\u2019s flagship newsletter offering useful advice on style, health, and more, four days a week. Sign up here to get it in your inbox.<\/a><\/p>\n

Like protein<\/a>, creatine<\/a>, and vitamin D, magnesium is one of a handful of nutrients that has achieved escape velocity from niche wellness circles and routinely makes the rounds through the broader conversation\u2014and not undeservedly so. \u201cThe importance of magnesium cannot be overstated,\u201d says J. Rand Baggesen, MD, founder and medical director at Executive Health Group<\/a>.<\/p>\n

While magnesium tends to come up on podcasts in the context of improving sleep or supporting healthy muscle function, the mineral actually plays a vital, much broader role in all kinds of bodily functions across the nervous, endocrine, cardiovascular, and musculoskeletal systems, says Daniel Chavez, RD, CSCS, a registered dietician at Fay Nutrition<\/a>\u2014everything from regulating blood sugar to repairing DNA. \u201cYou could actually be so broad as to say magnesium supports every function of the body,\u201d says Laura Purdy, MD, MBA, founder and CEO of Swell Medical<\/a>.<\/p>\n

You get the picture: Magnesium is a big deal. However, experts explained to GQ that magnesium intake is actually pretty far down the list of things you should likely be concerning yourself with. Here\u2019s why.<\/p>\n

You\u2019re probably already getting enough magnesium through your diet.<\/p>\n

\u201cMost people are not deficient in magnesium,\u201d says Dr. Purdy. For one, the nutrient is relatively abundant in most modern diets. \u201cMagnesium is found in all kinds of food, whether that be grains, fruits, vegetables, fish\u2014just about anything that you can find in nature to eat, it’s going to have some form of magnesium in it,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

Moreover, magnesium isn\u2019t the kind of nutrient you need to bomb your system with on a daily basis to reap the benefits\u2014unlike, for example, protein<\/a>. \u201cBecause it is such an important substance, your body does a good job of storing it,\u201d says Dr. Purdy. \u201cIt’s absorbed in the intestines and stored in the bone marrow. So if you have a period where you’re maybe not eating as much, you still have some magnesium to pull from.\u201d<\/p>\n

Magnesium supplements can be helpful\u2014in specific cases.<\/p>\n

While magnesium is undeniably an important factor in supporting sleep, muscle function, and mood\u2014the kinds of things people tend to seek quick-fix solutions for\u2014it\u2019s not something you\u2019ll want to throw at a specific problem. As mentioned, you\u2019re probably already getting enough through your diet, but also, overdoing it could potentially be harmful, says Dr. Purdy, given magnesium\u2019s broader implications throughout the body.<\/p>\n

\u201cWith magnesium, more is definitely not more,\u201d says Dr. Purdy, who advises anyone using a magnesium supplement to stay close to the recommended daily value, unless otherwise directed by a doctor. (The NIH\u2019s Office of Dietary Supplements recommends<\/a> healthy adult males aim for 400\u2013420 milligrams of magnesium per day.) \u201cThe purpose of a recommended daily value is it’s been tested and it’s been studied so that you know that you will be safe and healthy ingesting that amount,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

If it seems like your diet might be falling short in the magnesium department (an evaluation best left to your doctor, with the help of a red blood cell analysis), supplements are a convenient way to fill in any gaps.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe lose magnesium via sweat and stress,\u201d says Brittany Michels, MS, RDN, LDN, CPT, a registered dietitian at The Vitamin Shoppe<\/a>. \u201cAthletes in particular, especially those with high sweat rates, are prone to magnesium depletion.\u201d If you play sports or live a particularly active lifestyle (sit down, weekend warrior), muscle cramping and restlessness are the most common signs that you might be falling short of your recommended daily intake. Of course, those are also symptoms of dehydration, so maybe start by making sure you\u2019re drinking enough water before reaching for a magnesium supplement.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"This story is from Manual, GQ\u2019s flagship newsletter offering useful advice on style, health, and more, four days…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":132488,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[36],"tags":[134,111,139,556,69,1243],"class_list":{"0":"post-353747","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-nutrition","8":"tag-health","9":"tag-new-zealand","10":"tag-newzealand","11":"tag-nutrition","12":"tag-nz","13":"tag-shopping"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/353747","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=353747"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/353747\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/132488"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=353747"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=353747"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=353747"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}