Magnesium dosage advice

[AaronB]

Hi Everyone,

For the past six weeks, I have been taking Natural Calm, Magnesium Citrate supplement. Initially, I was just taking 1tsp, and slowly increased to the recommended 2 tsps. (351g) 81% RDA.

I started taking this as after doing lots of research into digestive symptoms that I have been having, and realising after looking at my diet, that I was very likely magnesium deficient.

I have been diagnosed by my GP as having IBS, and likely a Gluten sensitivity. Although how true the gluten part is I'm not sure, as on one day, I can eat whatever I like, but on another day, I have to steer clear.

I also take Lansoprazole 15mg per day, for acid reflux.

So onto the present predicament. I have been reading that too much magnesium, can cause loose stools. I most definitely have that! And it's recommended to reduce dose slightly. After doing this though, I have been experiencing bloating issues again. So it seems that if I stick to two tsps, I'm good with my belly/bloating, but too loose stools. Reduce it, and my stools improve, but bloating returns!

So, does anyone else take this and have any advice? I'm considering staying at two tsps, and introducing more fibre to my diet in attempt to take care of the issue.

I'm also considering, or 'trying' to stop the Lansoprazole as Magnesium can help a lot with this also. Maybe this will help the bloating too?

And to be clear, GP has diagnosed IBS, Gluten sensitivity, and is aware that I am taking a magnesium supplement and is happy with that.

Looking forward to hearing peoples experiences.

PS I was taking the two tsps at night, before bed. I have since read that I should really be taking it throughout the day so am now taking one tsp in the morning, and one before bed. This could help the loose stools situation also.

[MyNameIsTerry]

Citrate is one of the forms of magnesium that is used to treat constipation in certain doses.

Switch to a different form of magnesium that isn't used for this purpose and you will be able to take higher doses without any impact on your bowels.

On the Natural Remedies board there are some detailed threads about different forms of magnesium that will give you some ideas.

[sial72]

Hi there
I take Magnesium Bisglycinate, I take 300 mg a day spread out in 3 capsules, morning, lunchtime and night. I have been taking them for a almost 2 months now and so far, so good. No digestive issues.
I had been taking Omeprazole for 2 years. I completely changed my diet and now I don't need it, I managed to stop taking it about 3 months ago.
I have gone gluten, dairy and sugar free. Not actually as bad as it sounds :D

[AaronB]

Thanks for the replies guys

My only concern at changing the type of magnesium is that I very much enjoy taking this particular brand as it tastes nice and is very easy to take. I struggle with taking tablets and capsules so this suits very well.

My other concern is that my main ailment is bloating. I bloat so bad that I have shortness of breath and it really does affect me. So I'm wondering if I were to change the type of magnesium would I be risking not focusing on the bloating side of things?

Did anyone else have bloating issues that improved with magnesium?

[MyNameIsTerry]

You can use magnesium chloride which comes in a spray form. Spray it on your feet though which avoids stinging which can occur if you spray it on areas with a magnesium deficit.

Whichever form you take, its about the mg content of the magnesium regardless of the form so any of them can be used. Some are more likely to target you to relieve constipation though and these are the forms to avoid.

What about something else for bloating anyway? I found peppermint tea worked well to relieve a bout of mild IBS I had last year.

There will be a load of threads about this issue on the Natural Remedies board, I reckon. There is one on the first page about acid issues.

[AaronB]

Thanks for the reply

The magnesium spray sounds interesting, is there a brand considered a particularly good option? There seems to be quite a few and not many reviews unlike natural calm.

Continued diarrhoea today, so need to make a change somehow.

Peppermint tea being bought today so will try that.

What is the natural remedies board you refer to? (ETA, sorry, just seen the Natural Remedies section, thanks for pointing me there!)

Thanks

[sial72]

People use Magnesium oil spray to relieve the pain of neuropathies. I know that in the States loads of people recommend Ancient Minerals Magnesium oil, I don't know wether that is available in the UK

[AaronB]

I am thinking that the spray might be the best alternative.

Right now though I'm seeing if I can continue to use Natural Calm, but change the dose or take with a meal, or anything else to stop the diarrhoea.

I have read that Calcium makes stools harder? So maybe I should take a Calcium supplement alongside?

---------- Post added at 17:58 ---------- Previous post was at 17:58 ----------

Is there any professionals in supplement such as this I could speak to? What are they called?

[worrywart29]

I also use the spray and no lie I sleep like a baby every time. Right before bed I spray the soles of my feet with it because I found when I spray it other places it could sometime burn if you have even a small cut that you didn't realize was there. The spray is awesome and it doesn't affect the digestive system in anyway. The brand I use is life pro, but I also use ancient minerals. I'm in the states so if youre in the UK I'm not sure if the same brands will be available.

[sial72]

My acupuncturist knows a lot about supplements, I don't know if that is the case with all acupuncturists.
Also natural medicine doctors.
Or maybe you could just ask at Holland & Barretts or your local health food store, sometimes they have quite good knowledge about supplements.
I think I read somewhere about not taking calcium with magnesium, can't remember why, but it's always a good idea to ask somebody...

[MyNameIsTerry]

You can get Ancient Minerals on Amazon in the UK. Other brands like Better You seem to get a lot of good reviews. There are loads of reviews on Amazon you could check out.

I know you can get Better You in Tesco as they started stocking some of their range last year but you will pay over the odds in there. Its an easy way to do some label checking though if you can't see them online (they should be on Amazon though).

Independent health stores can be useful for information if they are small businesses as the owner may be able to help. There is one local to me and he has always seemed pretty knowledgeable.

The only issue with certain forms like citrate is the bowel tolerance issue. If you really wanted to, you could reduce the citrate under that level and top up with a different form such as transdermal (sprays, bath oils & flakes, etc). You can get ones that start to dissolve in the mouth due to their size (Angstrom measurement) known as ionic forms. Then there are the chelated ones which are bound to an amino acid to aid in delivery so they are absorbed better by the gut as they use the amino acid to bypass certain digestion complications. With the chelated ones though you need to check what the amino acid is for as some are more geared towards anxiety & depression anyway and the other thing to be careful with is the volume of magnesium vs. amino acid because some brands are quite low in terms of magnesium.

Have you thought of looking at the IBS subforum of the Symptoms board? Maybe some things mentioned on there could help you?

[Pet59]

I would highly recommend the magnesium spray! Apparently it is the best and quickest way to get magnesium into your system. Tablets take time because they have to be digested and absorbed.

I also read on the spray that I had that when first sprayed on skin, there may be a tingling sensation and this is a sign that you are deficient.

I took it religiously for weeks when I was in my highly anxious state. It calmed me as well, helped me sleep better, settled my tummy problems. Unfortunately I ran out and never replenished......you have just reminded me...perhaps I should start it again!!!

[AaronB]

While we're on this subject, Natural Calm's instructions say two teaspoons. Are those teaspoons supposed to be heaped or level?

I've been taking heaped which might explain my over dosing!

[rsanchez]

I'm taking Natural Calm Plus Calcium. These come in little packets so they are already pre-measured. It definitely gave me loose stool, even with the added calcium. I also think it gave me stomach upset and I'm scared it messed with my heart. :scared15:

[MyNameIsTerry]

If it is a powder then it will be level teaspoons unless it specifies heaped.

So, that might explain it a bit.

Calcium seems to be an issue under debate when taking with magnesium, some same 1:1 but some say this is outdated and should be 2:1 in favour of magnesium.

Davit knows a lot about using calcium so I think you need an answer from him on that as he understands the impact to neurotransmitters as I've seen him mention it on a couple of threads now.

Anxiety causes magnesium to be leeched from our bones so I think supplementation is very wise. So, whether RDA's are applicable is debateable as they are based on a normal range without anxiety burning through nutrients so its always worth Googling around for specialist advice on that one.

You might want to consider probiotics for your gut. If you eat a lot of pre-procesed foods its supposed to cause us to break down less of the nutrients in our foods so don't think you will be getting what the label says it provides. Probiotics will help with this but they may help with your bloating & IBS too. I know I've read product reviews from people saying IBS meds didn't help but probiotics did so its always worth a look and they are essential to good health anyway from out gut to the other exit :blush: (and even back into the vagina afterwards for women as I found out more recently!)

[AaronB]

I have taken two, flat teaspoons of natural calm today. And so far, so good.

I do have a terrible migraine though, which I am sure is unrelated (and MIGHT be related to the chocolate I had earlier :shrug: )

Thanks very much Mynameisterry for your detailed input into this thread, I'll update accordingly.

[rsanchez]

I'll look at probiotics next time I'm in the supermarket. I'll also consider that spray on magnesium, sounds better than the Natural Calm drink.

[MyNameIsTerry]

No problem, Aaron. I've been involved in some of the recent threads so I thought it worth redirecting you to them at least to see if they helped.

rsanchez - I'm not sure what your supermarkets are like but ours don't have much of a range in probiotics and they are pricey. So, if not, try the health food stores or go online. There are loads of them on places like Amazon with plenty of user reviews that might help.

And if you are feeling adventurous later on, you can make your own probiotics for a fraction of the price of supplements and yield a much bigger number of bacteria. People have been fermenting their own yoghurt, sauerkraut, cucumber pickles, Quark cheese, Kombucha tea, etc for a long time. One of the best forms is Kefir and its dead easy to make yielding about 1 trillion bacteria to a glass...that level in a supplement is very very expensive and doesn't have the number of bacterial strains anyway.

I've noticed Biokult is popular but there are much stronger probiotic supplments available. There are some good comparison websites showing what they all contain.

[AaronB]

Well my issues has improved greatly! To the point that I now can't go haha!

Still, I've made progress, now to find a good dose for me. Thanks for everyone's input :)

[MyNameIsTerry]

Oh well, at least you know how to solve that problem if you need to. You could always add a different form into the mix to add some mg's on if you like this one as your main or spray some on. Lots of options really and some are better for us people who have issues with taking supplements.

One common form you see in supermarket own branded magnesium supplements is magnesium oxide. If you put that in a glass of water it turns into magnesium hydroxide...otherwise known as milk of magnesia! Probably worth staying away from that one unless you have a stomach upset I guess as its going to play around with your stomach acid.