Magnesium for Stress – a Buyer’s Guide for Nerds

How different varieties of magnesium could be beneficial for stress

Glycinate

Magnesium glycinate has shown the ability to help reduce stress by combining magnesium, which calms the nervous system, with glycine, an amino acid that enhances relaxation and reduces stress hormones. This form is particularly gentle and effective for addressing chronic stress.

Citrate

Magnesium citrate has shown the ability to support stress resilience by replenishing magnesium levels critical for nervous system function. Its calming effects may help reduce physical symptoms of stress, such as muscle tension and fatigue.

Oxide

Magnesium oxide has shown the ability to support stress management by replenishing magnesium levels needed for nervous system balance. However, its lower bioavailability means its effects may be slower compared to other magnesium forms.

Hydroxide

Magnesium hydroxide may help reduce stress by calming the nervous system, though its use is more commonly focused on digestion than stress relief.

Malate

Magnesium malate has shown the ability to support stress resilience by replenishing magnesium levels critical for nervous system balance and promoting relaxation. Its combination with malic acid may also aid cellular energy production, which can combat stress-related fatigue.

Lactate

Magnesium lactate has shown the ability to support stress resilience by replenishing magnesium levels, which are crucial for balancing the nervous system and promoting relaxation. Its lactate component may help support energy production, reducing fatigue often associated with stress.

L-Threonate

Magnesium L-threonate has shown the ability to support stress resilience by enhancing magnesium levels in the brain, which helps regulate neural activity and promote relaxation. It may also aid cognitive stress recovery by improving brain cell communication.

Taurate

Magnesium taurate has shown the ability to support stress management by combining the calming effects of magnesium with taurine, an amino acid that regulates the nervous system and promotes relaxation. This combination may help reduce the physical and mental impacts of stress.

Orotate

Magnesium orotate has shown the ability to support stress resilience by replenishing magnesium stores essential for calming the nervous system. The orotic acid component may enhance energy production in cells, helping to combat stress-induced fatigue.

Ascorbate

Magnesium ascorbate has shown the ability to support stress management by combining magnesium’s calming effects on the nervous system with vitamin C’s role in reducing cortisol and oxidative stress. Together, they may improve resilience during periods of chronic stress.

Aspartate

Magnesium aspartate has shown the ability to support stress resilience by replenishing magnesium stores essential for calming the nervous system. The aspartate component may enhance magnesium absorption and contribute to cellular energy production, improving the body’s ability to handle stress.

Chloride

Magnesium chloride has shown the ability to support stress management by replenishing magnesium levels, which are critical for calming the nervous system and promoting relaxation. Its high absorption rate makes it effective for quickly addressing magnesium deficiencies often exacerbated by stress.

Gluconate

Magnesium gluconate has shown the ability to support stress resilience by replenishing magnesium stores essential for calming the nervous system. Its high bioavailability makes it effective for maintaining a steady magnesium supply, often depleted during chronic stress.

Carbonate

Magnesium carbonate has shown the ability to support stress management by replenishing magnesium levels essential for calming the nervous system. Its ability to buffer acidity may also aid in stress-related digestive discomfort, such as acid reflux.

Sulfate

Magnesium sulfate has shown the ability to help reduce stress, primarily through its external use in baths. Absorption through the skin may help relax muscles and calm the nervous system, reducing stress-related tension.

How Magnesium benefits Stress – my 23 Notes from Science

Potential benefits of Magnesium for stress, to discuss with your nutritionist or doctor:

1-15 are from Magnesium Status and Stress: The Vicious Circle Concept Revisited. While 16-17 are from Neuroprotective effects of magnesium: implications for neuroinflammation and cognitive decline and 18-23 from  Magnesium and the Hallmarks of Aging.

1. Similar Symptoms
   Of note, symptoms of magnesium deficiency and stress are very similar, the most common being fatigue, irritability, and mild anxiety [5,6,7]
2. The Vicious Circle of Stress and Magnesium
   The idea of a bidirectional relationship between magnesium and stress was first introduced by Galland and Seelig, in the early 1990s [9,10] and then referred to as the vicious circle. This vicious circle implies that stress can increase magnesium loss, causing a deficiency; in turn, magnesium deficiency can enhance the body’s susceptibility to stress [10]
3. Magnesium: Essential Intracellular Cation
   Being the second most abundant intracellular cation [5], magnesium is involved in almost all major metabolic and biochemical processes [13]
4. Absorption and Storage of Magnesium
   Magnesium is mainly absorbed in the distal parts of the small intestine [22], and mostly stored in bones [22], where it serves as a reservoir to maintain the equilibrium with its extracellular concentration [22]
5. EFSA’s Magnesium Intake Recommendations
   The European Food Safety Agency (EFSA) did not consider the available scientific evidence strong enough to determine RDAs, and has suggested an “adequate intake” of 350 and 300 mg/day for men and women, respectively [16]
6. Chronic Stress Depletes Magnesium
   However, a chronic stressor exposure may result in a depletion of various resources as described by Selye, including magnesium [42,93]
7. Impact of Stress on Magnesium: Studies
   The impact of stress on magnesium status has been extensively investigated in both animal and human studies [42,121]
8. Mild Hypomagnesemia from Stress Exposure
   Mild hypomagnesemia can be observed in response to mid- or long-term exposure to stress
9. Seasonal Impact on Magnesium Levels
   These results were lastly confirmed by a third experiment, assessing both the impact of physical stress and temperature on serum magnesium levels and finding that serum magnesium levels after exercise were significantly lower in winter than in summer [126]
10. Stress Tests Alter Magnesium Levels
    A variety of tests have demonstrated that magnesium levels, both in serum and urine, are affected by the exposure to stress stimuli
11. Post-Exercise Magnesium Depletion
    However, after both physical tests, magnesium levels dropped below the pre-exercise values [135]. A summary of the pre-clinical and clinical evidence is shown in Table 4
12. Human Studies Confirm Animal Findings
    Results in human studies are consistent with animal findings and show low magnesium status in stressed/depressed populations
13. Stress Hormones and Magnesium Excretion
    In response to a stressful stimulus, stress hormones are released, causing an increase of magnesium extracellular levels [90]. As a consequence, higher magnesium concentrations are excreted through the kidneys [133]
14. Supplementation Improves Stress Responses
    Magnesium supplementation of 400 mg/day was associated with a clear improvement of the heart rate variability, measured as an indicator of the parasympathetic and vagal systems’ response to stress, in subjects who were asked to complete moderate muscle endurance training once weekly [153]
15. Correlation Between Magnesium and Stress
    Noteworthy, magnesium intake has been found negatively correlated with subjective stress in some populations [148], and magnesium supplementation has shown benefits in stressed but otherwise healthy subjects [153,154]
16. Conditions Leading to Hypomagnesemia
    Alcoholism, severe burns, chronic stress, hyperaldosteronism, and prolonged parenteral fluid administration without magnesium supplementation can also lead to hypomagnesemia
17. Magnesium Glycinate and Cognitive Health
    Although direct studies on the impact of magnesium glycinate on cognitive function are limited, its role in enhancing sleep quality and reducing anxiety could indirectly support cognitive health by promoting restorative sleep and lowering stress levels, both of which are beneficial for cognitive performance and neuroprotection (58)
18. Stress and Stroke Risk
    Data from a second examination of the Copenhagen City Heart Study showed that self-reported high stress intensity and weekly stress were associated with almost a doubled risk of fatal stroke (Truelsen et al., 2003)
19. Magnesium Deficiency and DNA Damage
    Conversely, inadequate magnesium concentrations weaken the stability of DNA by inducing damage and oxidative stress to the double-stranded structure [31,32]
20. Magnesium and Mitochondrial Stress
    Disrupting magnesium mitochondrial homeostasis reduces ATP production, alters mitochondrial membrane potential, and intensifies oxidative stress [70]
21. Acute Stress Increases Magnesium Excretion
    Acute stress has been shown to be associated with increased plasma Mg levels and increased urinary Mg excretion (Murck, 2002; Whyte et al., 1987)
22. Oxidative Stress and Magnesium’s Role
    Several studies have shown that psychological stress exacerbates lipid peroxidation, increases production of markers of oxidative damage of DNA (8-oxo-7,8-dihydroguanine), and decreases plasma anti-oxidant activity (Seelig, 1994; Sivonova et al., 2004). Many of these processes are antagonized by Mg (Cernak et al., 2000; Muir, 2002; Nishizawa et al., 2007)
23. Hippocampal Sensitivity to Magnesium Deficiency
    Hippocampal neurons are more sensitive to low Mg than neurons from other brain regions and their responses to Mg deficiency differ depending on the developmental period (Furukawa et al., 2009)

Useful link:

• Magnesium Status and Stress (Nutrients, 2020)
• Neuroprotective effects of magnesium (Frontiers in Endocrinology, 2024)
• Magnesium and the Hallmarks of Aging (Nutrients, 2024)