Going crazy with your mood swings? Health issues keep coming at you no matter what? Can’t figure out what you’re doing wrong? More often than you think, it’s all because of lack of sleep.
Lack of sleep, disturbed sleep, erratic sleep routines, and insomnia wreak havoc with your health behind the curtain. So whether you’re facing any issues right now or not, to ensure a healthy life, set your sleep clock right. One of the best ways to do so is to check your magnesium levels and take supplements.
Why You Need Magnesium
Magnesium is important for your health, is required for the regular functioning of the body, present naturally in your body, and also gets into your body through foods.
Among other things, it boosts your brain function, strengthens your bone, and maintains your muscle health. It also assists in reducing inflammation, digestive problems like constipation, and blood pressure.
Best of all, it helps you sleep better.
5 Ways Magnesium Improves Sleep Quality
1. Activates Neurotransmitters
One of the many reasons for lack of sleep in your body is a stressed out body and mind. You tend to overwork your brain, worrying about random situations from the past, when all your body needs is a little bit of sleep. Here’s where magnesium will help.
- First, magnesium supplements trigger the neurotransmitters in your brain, which signal and activate the parasympathetic nerves. These nerves, in turn, help you to relax and calm down.
- Second, they work on gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) receptors, which is what sleep medication target. GABA receptors calm down your nerves and induce sleep.1
2. Targets Magnesium Deficiency
Among the signs of magnesium deficiency are sleep deficiencies and insomnia. Studies have connected a good amount of magnesium to a regular sleep routine; an increase or decrease in magnesium levels can cause health issues.2
Although anybody can get affected by this, you might be more vulnerable to magnesium deficiencies in old age or if you’ve digestive issues, diabetes, and alcohol addiction.
3. Instigates Deeper Sleep
While you might be sleeping for a long duration, you might not be getting enough of deep sleep. Magnesium supplements will help you achieve this.
Studies have shown that magnesium supplements of about 500 mg improved the quality of sleep of older people significantly. Some studies that induced magnesium deficiency in mice actually resulted in restlessness. By preventing “hyperactive and excitable” molecules from triggering neurons, magnesium keeps you calm. However, remember that research has so far focused on the elderly and more studies are required on other age groups.
4. Resolves Anxiety And Depression
Mood disorders such as anxiety and depression and magnesium deficiency are closed related. Magnesium deficiency can actually lead to mood disorders, whereas these disorders directly cause sleep problems. Taking magnesium supplements will alleviate all of these issues at one go.3
To go with this, research shows that magnesium can actually enhance the effectiveness of antidepressants, likely due to its effect on neurons. So your chances of recovery from any of these issues are high.
5. Regulates Hormones
Magnesium supplements affect the level of melatonin, which affects your sleep cycle. It increases the level of melatonin along with renin, both of which improve sleep.4
Studies have observed the effect of magnesium, melatonin, and zinc supplements on insomnia patients. These subjects showed a remarkable improvement in the quality of sleep.
A Few Tips For Magnesium Intake
The first step to take here is to check the level of magnesium in your body. The ideal magnesium intake per day is around 320 mg for women and 420 mg for men.5 There’s no right dosage of magnesium to treat insomnia. So check with your doctor and take accordingly.
You can take magnesium through different forms: supplements, nuts, green veggies, meat, fish, and certain fruits. However, the best bet for a healthy life and sleep schedule is to take the right amount of whole foods. Along with this, take up a few measures such as reducing coffee intake, sleeping at the same time every day, meditation and exercising before sleeping, and avoiding gadgets before sleeping.
It is pertinent to go to your doctor because the supplements can cause side effects and also interfere with treatments such as antibiotics, blood pressures pills, and muscle relaxants.
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