If you are on a keto diet, it’s crucial that you get adequate magnesium daily. But what are the best types of magnesium for keto? And which types should you avoid?
In this article, we are going to talk about the benefits of magnesium supplementation, the role of magnesium in the ketogenic diet, and the types of magnesium supplements, ranked from best to worst.
If you’re trying to decide which one is perfect for your diet and lifestyle, you came to the right place.
Magnesium is one of the most essential minerals for our body. It plays a role in hundreds of biochemical reactions in your body.
Magnesium is essential for nerve and muscle function, blood sugar regulation, and blood pressure regulation. It also has profound benefits and roles for both heart and brain health.
Everyone should ensure that they get their daily magnesium needs, including those who follow the ketogenic diet.
If you are on a ketogenic diet, your electrolyte levels may decline. Electrolytes include:
When you’re on keto and limiting your carb intake, you will experience a drop in insulin levels. Insulin helps your body retain electrolytes.
Even if you aren’t on a ketogenic diet, magnesium deficiency or low magnesium is very common.
There are two main reasons why people who follow the ketogenic diet must take magnesium supplements.
First, while magnesium is highly available in a wide variety of foods, the majority of foods that are rich in magnesium are also high in carbs – a very big “no” in the ketogenic diet and another low-carb diet.
Second, many of our foods have lower nutrient value because soils are lower in magnesium than ever (due to modern farming practices). This means that you’ll not get the same amount of nutrients from the foods that you eat compared to what our ancestors got.
Most of us drink treated water, which is also low in magnesium and contains chemicals that can bind to magnesium, making it unusable in our bodies.
That’s why magnesium supplements can be a great way for you to meet your daily magnesium needs. Of course, whether you supplement is a personal choice. Just make sure you get enough magnesium while on keto.
Getting enough magnesium helps in keeping our overall health in optimal shape. However, not having enough magnesium does the opposite – it causes minor to major health issues depending on how low your magnesium levels are.
If you are wondering whether or not you are low in magnesium, here are some of the common symptoms of low magnesium level:
If you suspect that you have hypomagnesemia (low magnesium levels), consult your doctor so that you can be properly diagnosed and see if you are low in magnesium or potentially other health conditions.
If you find that you have a magnesium deficiency, then adding magnesium-rich foods to your diet and supplementation can be helpful.
There are a variety of magnesium supplements to choose from on the market. Whether you decide to take a powder supplement, a topical supplement, or even a supplement in pill form, there are pros and cons to each method.
Before you take a magnesium supplement, it’s important to know what works best for you! For instance, if you are looking for maximum absorption, then using a powder magnesium citrate supplement might be the best option.
If you’re looking for a supplement to help specifically with muscle pains, using topical or bath salts like Epsom salt can be most beneficial for you.
A good place to start is exploring the different types of magnesium that you can take. Some of the options include magnesium citrate, magnesium l-threonate, magnesium glycinate, magnesium malate, and more. We will explain the pros and cons of these and other forms of magnesium below.
As we pointed out above, magnesium plays a key role in our overall health. This means that magnesium is essential to our diet, regardless of the diet we follow. Here are some of the key roles of magnesium for our health:
Aside from these roles and benefits, magnesium is also important – especially for low-carb diets such as the ketogenic diet – because it is one of our body’s electrolytes. Electrolytes are minerals that can conduct electricity. That being said, they are very essential in our muscle and nerve function – they bring the “impulse” to our nerves.
However, in the ketogenic diet, our electrolytes are drastically depleted due to water and mineral excretion as our body excretes excess glucose. This excretion of minerals (including magnesium) is one of the causes behind what is known as the “keto flu”, or a series of symptoms that one can experience after starting on the keto diet.
Therefore, it is important to supplement our body with magnesium and other electrolytes – other minerals that act as electrolytes are potassium, calcium, sodium, and chloride.
If you are on a ketogenic diet, then supplementing with a variety of lost nutrients can be key – magnesium being one of the most important.
By this point, we have already talked about the importance of taking magnesium supplements when following the ketogenic diet. If you decide that magnesium supplementation is right for you, you must know that there are different types of magnesium – and more importantly, that some of them are good and some of them are not-so-good.
The reason why magnesium supplements have different types is that, by themselves, magnesium will not work properly in our bodies. They need an element or compound to combine with them for them to be effective in bringing their health benefits.
Some types of magnesium are better for different purposes. Let’s discuss the best and worst types of magnesium supplements. We will cover magnesium citrate, magnesium oxide, magnesium l-threonate, magnesium glycinate, magnesium malate, and more.
Best Types of Magnesium
Magnesium citrate is one of the most popular magnesium supplements on the market.
This is a form of magnesium that is created by combining magnesium carbonate with citric acid. This combination forms an ionic compound, a salt, that is both negatively and positively charged by magnesium and citrate ions. The magnesium ions are positive while the citrate ions are negatively charged. These ratios can form in 1:1, 3:2 or other ratios as well.
Magnesium citrate is often a choice of those on a ketogenic diet because it’s easy to take, readily absorbed by your bloodstream, and can even taste good.
Magnesium citrate is most commonly used to support digestion regulation, muscle and nerve support, bone strength, and heart health.
Natural Calm is made from magnesium citrate and you can browse the different sugar-free flavours here!
Magnesium L-threonate is another common type of magnesium supplement. This type of magnesium supplement is mostly known for its benefits and impact on brain health.
Magnesium L-threonate can help in managing or reducing symptoms of brain-related problems such as depression, anxiety, and hyperactivity. Also, magnesium L-threonate is so far the only type of magnesium that significantly increases the levels of magnesium in our brain.
Magnesium glycinate is a type of magnesium that is made by combining magnesium and glycine, one of the amino acids. Magnesium glycinate is mostly known for its therapeutic effects. As such, magnesium glycinate can help in improving one’s mood, relieve anxiety, and support better sleep.
Aside from its relaxing effects, magnesium glycinate can also reduce nerve pain and improve the symptoms of leaky gut.
Magnesium malate is one of the most preferred types of magnesium supplement if you want to improve your energy levels. Although only around 6.5% of magnesium can be found in this type, it can still be effective in improving one’s energy level. If you have trouble with chronic fatigue, magnesium malate can work for you as well.
Aside from magnesium, malic acid – the acid combined with magnesium in this type – also plays a role in improving our energy level since, on its own, its very role is in improving our body’s energy production and ATP synthesis.
If you do not know about magnesium sulfate, you may know about its more popular name: Epsom salt.
Like magnesium citrate, Epsom salt or magnesium sulfate is also proved to be very effective in remedying constipation. However, it is considered that Epsom salt is not safe as a dietary supplement. On the good side, though, you can use Epsom salt for external home uses.
Magnesium chloride is one of the most absorbable types of magnesium supplements in the body. Its main benefit is its ability to improve our kidney function and stimulate our metabolism. Aside from that, magnesium chloride is one of the best types if you want to detoxify your cells and tissues.
If you suffer from low acid levels in your stomach, magnesium chloride can help you as well because the chloride used in this type produces hydrochloric acid for your gut.
Magnesium orotate is very popular in the fitness and athletics world. This is because aside from improving one’s energy level, which can translate to better physical performance, magnesium orotate is also great for the heart. Aside from being good for the heart, magnesium orotate is also easily absorbable in our bodies.
If there is a downside to magnesium orotate, it’s its price – magnesium orotate is generally more expensive compared to other types of magnesium supplements. But perhaps, its benefits explain its premium price.
Some may praise magnesium oxide because it contains around 60% of magnesium. This has led to the conclusion that we can get a lot of magnesium from magnesium oxide. However, it turns out that it’s not.
Magnesium oxide is found to have low bioavailability and is poorly absorbed by our body. In fact, magnesium oxide is so poorly absorbed by our body that it is estimated that only around 4% of the magnesium is absorbed by our body. This means that the rest of the supplement is simply wasted.
While different types of magnesium supplements can cause different side effects, generally, too much magnesium (from supplements) can cause side effects such as diarrhea, abdominal cramping, and nausea. Don’t overdo magnesium in any single dose. Follow the product label or the guidance of your doctor.
While too much magnesium from supplements can cause side effects, the same is generally not true when it comes to foods. In other words, an averagely healthy adult can consume as much magnesium as he or she wants from food sources.
Magnesium is one of the most essential minerals for our body because it plays varying roles that are important in keeping our body’s normal functioning. Muscle and nerve function, immune system, heart health, brain health, blood sugar, and blood pressure are some of the physiological areas in which magnesium plays a role.
In the case of keto, magnesium is also important because it acts as an electrolyte, something that is drastically depleted from the keto diet and other low-carb diets due to excessive water and mineral excretion. Electrolytes play a vital role as they keep your muscle and nerve function intact – they provide the “impulse” to your nerves.
That being said, taking magnesium supplements is important and would be very beneficial to your overall health. However, there are different types of magnesium supplements and you need to know their uses to better maximize their use. Hopefully, you finished this article knowing the different types of magnesium supplements, their benefits, and their potential cons. If you still have questions about magnesium, we have a variety of free resources on our blog that you can browse.
If you’re taking certain medications, we always recommend speaking to a physician first before consuming magnesium.
If you are trying to pick out a type of magnesium, then it’s important to understand where you are coming from. If you are on a ketogenic diet, then choosing a magnesium supplement that is easily absorbed is key. Because of the loss of nutrients and minerals while on a ketogenic diet, it’s key to get in a good form of magnesium.
We recommend magnesium citrate as it comes in powder form and is readily absorbed by your bloodstream.
If you are on a ketogenic diet, then supplementing nutrients you may be missing out on is key. Magnesium is just one of the things you should supplement while on keto. Potassium, Vitamin D, Omega-3’s, digestive enzymes, and electrolytes are also key to take.
While it is important to have adequate levels of these things, it’s also important that you do not take too much. When you have mineral imbalances, you can face similar issues as if you didn’t have enough. That is why it is a fine line to walk with what you chose to supplement, and what you try to get from food.
We recommend chatting with your dietician, nutritionist, or even doctor before adding in that many supplements, but knowing what you may need is a good place to start.
As we mentioned above, magnesium citrate is one of the most common forms of magnesium and it’s also readily absorbable. This is because it is a combination of magnesium oxide and citric acid. It forms a powder that is easily absorbed once you drink it.
If you are on a ketogenic diet, or just a low carb diet in general, then adding Epsom salt baths into your routine is a great idea. Adding Epsom salt to your baths is an easy way to increase magnesium without having to take a supplement orally. While we suggest taking a magnesium citrate supplement as well, this is a great addition to things!
If you are to take an Epsom salt bath, then please reference the below chart to know how much Epsom salt to use in each bath.
| Size / Age | Epsom Salt Use/Bath |
| Children under 60 lbs | ½ cup of salt |
| Adults or children 60-100 lbs | 1 cup of salt |
| Adults or children 100-150 lbs | 1 ½ cup of salt |
| Adults or children 150-200 lbs | 2 cups of salt |
| Every 50 lbs larger | Add an additional ½ cup of salt |
The recommended value for magnesium intake is 200-400 milligrams. That said, if you go slightly over, it will not harm you. But if you dip below, that is where you will start to see issues. If you experience muscle weakness and general weakness, headaches, constipation, chronic fatigue, high blood pressure, irregular heartbeat, irritability, depression, anxiety it could be a sign of a serious deficiency and you should see a doctor.
If you want to use a magnesium supplement, here are a few options to get your recommended daily dose:
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