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Do you need that magnesium supplement?

Plenty of people buy magnesium for sleep or cramps without knowing whether their food already covers the day. Tap what you eat on an ordinary day, then check what the tub on your shelf really gives once the label's compound weight is turned into magnesium.

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Whose recommendation

You are

0 mg from food, of 320 mg

Tap + on what you eat in a day

Seeds and nuts

Pumpkin seeds, roasted · 30 g, a small handful
about 156 mg
0
Chia seeds · 2 tablespoons (28 g)
about 111 mg
0
Almonds · 30 g, about 23 nuts
about 80 mg
0
Cashews · 30 g
about 74 mg
0
Peanuts · ¼ cup (36 g)
about 63 mg
0
Peanut butter · 2 tablespoons
about 49 mg
0
Walnuts · 30 g
about 45 mg
0
Sunflower seeds · 30 g
about 36 mg
0
Flaxseed, ground · 1 tablespoon
about 27 mg
0

Beans, lentils and soy

Tofu, firm · ½ cup (125 g)
about 70 mg. Varies by brand.
0
Soy milk · 250 ml glass
about 61 mg
0
Black beans, cooked · ½ cup
about 60 mg
0
Edamame, shelled · ½ cup
about 50 mg
0
Chickpeas, cooked · ½ cup
about 39 mg
0
Lentils or dal, cooked · ½ cup
about 36 mg
0
Kidney beans, cooked · ½ cup
about 35 mg
0

Greens and vegetables

Spinach, cooked · ½ cup
about 78 mg
0
Swiss chard, cooked · ½ cup
about 75 mg
0
Potato, baked with skin · 1 medium
about 43 mg
0
Okra (bhindi), cooked · ½ cup
about 29 mg
0
Avocado · ½ fruit
about 22 mg
0
Broccoli, cooked · ½ cup
about 12 mg
0

Grains and cereals

Quinoa, cooked · ½ cup
about 59 mg
0
Shredded wheat · 2 biscuits
about 61 mg
0
Porridge oats · 40 g dry, one bowl
about 55 mg
0
Brown rice, cooked · ½ cup
about 42 mg
0
Breakfast cereal, fortified · 1 serving
about 42 mg. Check the label.
0
Ragi (finger millet) flour · 30 g, about 1 roti
about 41 mg
0
Whole-wheat bread · 1 slice
about 23 mg
0
White rice, cooked · ½ cup
about 10 mg
0

Dairy, fish and meat

Plain yogurt · 225 g pot
about 42 mg
0
Milk · 250 ml glass
about 25 mg
0
Salmon · 85 g fillet
about 26 mg
0
Chicken breast · 85 g
about 22 mg
0
Beef, lean · 85 g
about 20 mg
0

Fruit and treats

Dark chocolate, 70 to 85% · 30 g, 3 squares
about 65 mg
0
Banana · 1 medium
about 32 mg
0
Raisins · ½ cup
about 23 mg
0

What does your supplement really give?

“Magnesium glycinate 1,000 mg” on the front of a tub usually means the whole compound, of which only about a seventh is magnesium. The Supplement Facts or nutrition panel on the back gives the elemental amount, which is the one that counts.

Form on the label

Where the numbers come from

Targets: the US and Canada recommend 310 mg a day for women aged 19 to 30 and 320 mg from 31, 400 mg for men aged 19 to 30 and 420 mg from 31, 350 to 360 mg in pregnancy, and 360 or 410 mg for girls and boys aged 14 to 18. The European Food Safety Authority sets adequate intakes of 300 mg for women and 350 mg for men. The upper limit applies only to supplements and medicines (and, in Europe, fortified foods): 350 mg a day in the US and 250 mg in Europe. Magnesium from ordinary food has no upper limit because healthy kidneys pass the extra.

Food values are typical amounts from the US National Institutes of Health and USDA FoodData Central, and the Indian Food Composition Tables for ragi, rounded. The share of magnesium in each supplement form is calculated from the compound's chemistry and rounded; buffered blends and different hydrates vary, so the elemental figure on the back of the pack wins. Who is genuinely short, and what the sleep and cramp trials found: Magnesium: who is actually short.

General information, not medical advice. If you have kidney disease, or take antibiotics such as tetracyclines or quinolones, bisphosphonates for bones, thyroid medicine or diuretics, ask your doctor or pharmacist before taking magnesium; some need to be taken hours apart from it.