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Why My Magnesium Supplement of Choice is Magnesium Oxide

TLDR: I use and recommend Magnesium Oxide because it is more compact and easier to swallow. Also, being physically smaller, we only need to swallow a single pill. Studies claiming it doesn’t get absorbed are suspect.

My approach to supplementation is minimal. I do recommend magnesium as well as a few other minerals and vitamins. (To learn which ones and why click HERE.) One of the most common questions I get is Why do you recommend magnesium oxide and not one of the other more bioavailable magnesium formulations? This question reflects the common belief that some magnesium formulations don’t get absorbed. That would be quite concerning, if true. But it turns out, testing shows all 10 common magnesium supplements get the job done.

Let’s talk first about the types of magnesium supplements.

What types of magnesium supplements are there?

When we take a magnesium supplement, it’s never pure magnesium. Magnesium is a metal and totally indigestible. Magnesium must be combined with another molecule. Molecules commonly found in supplements include oxide, orotate, chloride, sulfate, carbonate, acetate, picolinate, citrate, gluconate, lactate, phosphate, and aspartate. Quite a variety!

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These can be divided into two big groups: organic and inorganic. 

The more expensive, larger tablets are organic. For example, magnesium citrate, orotate, and gluconate. The others are inorganic. Citrate, orotate, and gluconate are all larger carbon-containing molecules, so these supplements are physically bigger and can be so big that you have to take 2 or 3 pills each day versus just one of the inorganic forms.

Does the body use organic magnesium supplements better than inorganic ones?

I often see this claim that the more expensive, organic supplements are worth it because they are more bioavailable. That appears to be true. But it also appears not to be significant enough of a difference to matter.   

The study cited most often by folks claiming their supplement is superior to magnesium oxide was published in 2001, by Firoz et al). That study looked at 4 supplements, magnesium oxide, chloride, lactate, and aspartate, and then measured subjects’ urinary magnesium levels. Urine levels increased across the board, but magnesium oxide led to the smallest increase. They concluded magnesium oxide was the least bioavailable. However, that does not mean magnesium oxide won’t help us get our blood and tissue levels up if we’re deficient, which is what matters. 

You see, urine magnesium only goes up when the body has more magnesium than it needs. So the fact that some magnesium supplements make urine magnesium go up more than others just means you’ll be flushing more of that supplement down the drain.

Animal studies on the various magnesium supplement formulations show “no significant difference.”

A 2014 study published in Magnesium Research tested 7 different formulations on rats, Mg oxide, Mg sulphate, Mg chloride, Mg citrate, Mg gluconate, Mg orotate, Mg malate or ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid disodium Mg salt. They also tested each of these supplements on one group of rats that were fed a control diet with plenty of magnesium and on two more groups that were fed a mildly magnesium-deficient diet and a severely magnesium-deficient diet. Then, they tested blood, bone, and urine levels.

The authors concluded that “Mg concentrations did not differ between rats fed the different test diets.” Only the rats fed the deficient diets, and no supplement, showed significantly lower levels—as you’d expect.

Another study, from 2004, also published in Magnesium Research tested 10 forms of magnesium on rats:  oxide, chloride, sulfate, carbonate, acetate, picolinate, citrate, gluconate, lactate or aspartate. Then they measured how well each got into the bloodstream. They found “Mg absorption values obtained varied from 50% to 67%. Organic Mg salts were slightly more available than inorganic Mg salts.” Not much of a difference. It’s not enough to recommend one over the other.

Smaller supplements might be safer for you!

Swallowing a pill may sound easy but not for everyone. Several publications suggest that between 20 and 50 percent of adults struggle to take pills. (JAMA 2005 [, JAMA 2021 , Patient Prefer Adherence. 2021) Nearly 1/3 of people in long-term care facilities skip medications altogether if they’re too big. About 2 percent have choked and ended up in the ER (1% pill esophagitis, 1% pill impaction).

I’ve started asking my patients why they don’t take supplements and sure many people just forget. But a good portion admits they found it difficult to get them down. Choking to death on a pill that’s supposed to improve our health is probably something you’d like to avoid. In the context of making a blanket recommendation for a general population on my website, I’ve chosen smaller magnesium pills. Of course, if you’re good at swallowing big pills, then that’s not a factor. 

Looking for more data?

If you’re interested in more studies, I recommend this website: https://blog.algaecal.com/magnesium-oxide-delivers-more-magnesium-with-far-fewer-pills. Although it is a supplement company, they do a great job of breaking down the research. I suspect they used that research to decide what to put in their supplements. Their supplement contains both magnesium oxide and an organic form of magnesium, interestingly enough.

The takeaway

My mission is to make getting healthy as easy as possible. That includes protecting people from ripoff artists. I’m generally suspicious of anyone selling supplements, but especially expensive ones. If a cheap supplement is as effective as a more expensive one, and potentially safer, I don’t care how trendy the alternatives may be. I’m going to give you my honest recommendations. In this case, magnesium oxide appears to be the safer, cheaper, and equally effective option.

 

 

With over two decades of clinical experience and expertise in genetic and biochemical research, Dr. Cate can help you to reverse metabolic disease and reshape your body.

This Post Has One Comment

  1. I’ve stayed clear of magnesium oxide due to my history of diarrhea. Just wondering if this is fact or fiction that the oxide & citrate forms are more apt to cause diarrhea. Thank you.

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