Magnesium Glycinate Benefits, Dosage & Best Times to Take It
28th Jan 2025
The RIGHT Magnesium Glycinate Dosage for You
When you need to boost your magnesium levels, your doctor most likely told you about a few various forms of magnesium you can take and likely recommended one of the more absorbable ones, such as magnesium glycinate and magnesium citrate.
Further Reading: The Different Forms of Magnesium
Magnesium glycinate has been a hot topic for quite some time now and for good reason. Magnesium is a mineral needed for hundreds of processes in our body, including providing energy, muscle contraction and even regulating blood pressure. This means that when your levels are low, you need a form that’s going to boost them up again quickly so you can get your body working optimally again.
Magnesium glycinate benefits include:
- Improving the amount and quality of sleep you get
- Easing sore muscles and muscle cramps
- Improving vitamin D absorption
- Reducing the frequency of migraines
- Improving brain function and mental health, such as depression
- Improving bone health
Let’s move on to how much magnesium glycinate you should take.
Further Reading: All About Vitamin D
How Much Magnesium Glycinate Should I Take?
To begin with, it’s important to know how much elemental magnesium you should be getting each day.
- For women: 19—30 years: 310mg | 31—50+ years: 320mg
- For men: 19–30 years: 400mg | 31–50+ years: 420mg
You should reach this amount through the food you eat throughout the day, but if you find, for whatever reason, that you’re unable to consume enough foods with magnesium to reach this amount, you can take supplements.
To make elemental magnesium more stable and better absorbed by your body, it’s bound with other molecules, known as chelated magnesium or magnesium chelate.
This is where the different forms of magnesium come in, one of which, and one of the most absorbable, is magnesium glycinate.
Further Reading: Magnesium Glycinate FAQs Part 1
Is 500mg of magnesium too much?
Just because a supplement bottle says it’s 250mg, 500mg or 1000mg, doesn’t mean that’s how much elemental magnesium is inside. That figure includes filler ingredients and other compounds to make it into the capsule or tablet you take.
Flip the bottle around and in the ingredients list, it should tell you how much elemental magnesium you’re getting — keep in mind that some do not. So, a bottle of Xandro’s 500mg Magnesium Glycinate is not too much, because you’re actually getting 100mg of elemental magnesium. Other examples include Now Foods’ 2000mg Magnesium Glycinate which contains 200mg of elemental magnesium, while California GOLD Nutrition Magnesium Bisglycinate 1112mg provides 200mg of elemental magnesium.
Further Reading: Magnesium Glycinate FAQs Part 2
What is the magnesium glycinate dosage for adults?
Since each type of magnesium has a different absorption rate — meaning how well your body absorbs the supplement and then uses the magnesium — it’s best to speak to your doctor to see which is best for you.
When looking into how much magnesium glycinate to take, think about what you’re taking it for.
Magnesium glycinate dosage anxiety: Magnesium may help with anxiety when taking between 75mg and 360mg each day.
Further Reading: Magnesium Glycinate and Anxiety
Magnesium glycinate dosage for depression: Studies have found that taking 248mg of magnesium improved depression symptoms in those with mild to moderate depression, while taking 305mg of magnesium helped improve depression symptoms in those with low magnesium levels.
Magnesium glycinate dosage for sleep: As one of the best magnesium for sleep, get between 200 to 720mg of magnesium from your magnesium glycinate plus food throughout the day.
Magnesium glycinate dosage for migraines: Speak with your doctor to determine your required dosage as, for migraines, clinical trials have tested higher doses, which has a higher possibility of side effects. For migraines, research has shown that between 400mg and 600mg of magnesium daily may help prevent migraines in those with magnesium deficiency.
Further Reading: Magnesium Glycinate and Migraines
Magnesium glycinate dosage for blood pressure: A review found that those with high blood pressure may benefit from taking 300mg of magnesium daily for 12 weeks.
Magnesium glycinate dosage for restless legs and muscle cramps: A study found that taking 300mg of magnesium daily caused less frequent and less intense leg cramps.
Magnesium glycinate max dose: It’s recommended not to take more than 350mg of magnesium from supplements each day to avoid potential side effects, such as nausea, abominable cramps and diarrhea, making sure to also eat plenty of leafy greens, seeds, nuts, beans and rice, particularly roasted pumpkin seeds, chia seeds, cashews, peanuts, almonds and salmon.
Keep in mind that many of these benefits occur for people with low magnesium levels. More research is needed for whether such benefits exist for those with normal magnesium levels.
Since 1 in 2 people in the US don’t get enough magnesium, it goes to show that many people around the world are also likely not consuming the required amount of magnesium, so taking magnesium supplements may help you. Speak with your doctor to get your levels checked.
Further Reading: Magnesium Glycinate FAQs Part 3
FAQs
1. What is the recommended daily intake of magnesium for adults?
The Recommended Dietary Intake (RDI) for magnesium varies by age and gender:
Men:
- Ages 19–30: 400 mg per day
- Ages 31 and older: 420 mg per day
Women:
- Ages 19–30: 310 mg per day
- Ages 31 and older: 320 mg per day
2. Is chelated magnesium better than magnesium glycinate?
Chelated magnesium refers to magnesium bound to compounds, often amino acids, to improve their absorption. Magnesium glycinate is a specific type of chelated magnesium where magnesium is bound to the amino acid glycine. Studies suggest that chelated forms like magnesium glycinate have higher bioavailability compared to non-chelated forms, meaning they are more easily absorbed by the body.
3. What time is best to take magnesium glycinate?
Magnesium glycinate can be taken at any time of the day; the important thing is consistency. Taking it with a meal or snack can help reduce the likelihood of stomach upset, such as nausea and abdominal cramping, but some people may prefer taking it in the evening due to its potential calming effects, which may help improve your sleep.
End Note
It’s important to know how much of a supplement is safe to take before adding it to your daily routine to make sure you’re optimising your health rather than harming it.
By taking magnesium glycinate, you can improve your levels faster, thereby improving your sleep, bone health, anxiety levels and muscles. How much you take depends on what you’re taking it for, so speak with your doctor to figure out your needs.
If you’re looking for the best magnesium supplement, why not try Xandro’s Magnesium Glycinate 500mg?