Meeting your magnesium needs without any problems
Magnesium is a vital mineral that must be supplied daily. A sufficient supply is very important because magnesium is involved in over 300 important processes in the human body. Since the mineral cannot be produced in the body itself, it must be supplied in your diet.
The right dosage
Depending on gender, age and physical strain, between 300 mg and 400 mg of magnesium is required. A healthy adult woman should consume 300 mg of magnesium daily, a healthy adult man 350 mg to 400 mg per day. It is not always easy to consume the recommended daily amount – which is when supplementing your diet with a magnesium product can be useful. Above all athletes, people under stress, adolescents, pregnant and breastfeeding women, and diabetics have a high need for magnesium. Sufficient magnesium intake is particularly important here.
Distribute the intake of magnesium preparations
Stool softening or diarrhoea may occasionally occur when taking magnesium. In this case, it can help to first reduce the dosage and then slowly increase it. An alternative is to distribute the intake into several small portions throughout the day.
Best time to take it
Magnesium can be taken independently of times of the day and meal times and so you are free to choose when you take it. If a person suffers from night-time cramps in your calves, they should preferably take magnesium in the evening before going to bed. Those who take medication (such as thyroid hormones) or other minerals (such as calcium) in the morning should also take magnesium in the evening. Athletes usually prefer to take magnesium after exercise in order to support physical regeneration.
Magnesium overdose?
There is generally no risk of magnesium overdose (=hypermagnesemia) for healthy people. The body excretes excess magnesium via the urine. Soft stools or diarrhoea can be a sign of too high a dosage.
In people with impaired kidney function, the risk of magnesium overdose is higher. Excess magnesium cannot then be excreted completely in the urine.
Symptoms such as soft stools or diarrhoea, nausea, vomiting or impaired perception can be the result. You should therefore consult a doctor if you have been taking an overdose of magnesium for a long period of time, if your kidney function is impaired and/or if there is any evidence of hypermagnesemia.
Conclusion: Magnesium is a vital mineral that must be supplied to the body regularly (through food). With the right dosage and intake, magnesium can also be supplemented easily in the form of dietary supplements.
