If you’ve spent any time on the wellness side of the internet lately, you’ve probably seen magnesium hailed as a miracle mineral, the latest in a long line of “take this, and your life will be forever changed” supplements. People are popping these pills like they’re the Limitless pill, hoping to cure everything from a bad mood to a bad heart. But what do they actually do?
According to a series of recent studies rounded up by The Economist, the reality is a bit more nuanced, and a lot less magical.
The one thing magnesium almost certainly helps you with his migraines. The economist found a February 2025 review published in Neurological Sciences that found daily doses can cut migraine frequency by about 2.5 attacks per month. It works by dampening glutamate, a brain chemical that essentially acts as a megaphone for pain signaling. If your brain feels like it’s being whacked by a mallet, magnesium might provide some of the relief you’re looking for.
When it comes to whether magnesium helps your sleep and mental health, the data gets a little hazy. A 2025 study published in Nature and Science of Sleep found that while magnesium helped 69 participants sleep “slightly” better, the researchers noted the improvement wasn’t enough to actually kill off insomnia. A 2024 trial published in Sleep Medicine showed better REM sleep and alertness, but that one was industry-funded, so take its results with a grain of salt (or magnesium).
Will Magnesium Supplements Cure Your Depression?
As for taking magnesium for depression, a 2023 review of seven trials showed a “statistically significant” drop in depression scores, probably due to the mineral’s ability to inhibit enzymes linked to stress.
By far, the weakest link was to your heart. Unless you already have hypertension or a clinical magnesium deficiency, a magnesium supplement is going to do a whole lot for your blood pressure. Best stick to low-sodium foods and your box breathing exercises.
But why all the sudden interest in magnesium supplements in the first place? That largely has to do with our terrible diets. As Americans continue to chow down on heavily processed foods while shunning magnesium-rich foods like lagoons, seeds, leafy green vegetables, and a variety of beans, especially lima, Navy, and black-eyed peas, supplements seem like a go-to shortcut for getting your daily dose of something you would be getting if your diet weren’t so, let’s say, self-destructively indulgent.
You can buy yourself a bottle of magnesium if you want. It won’t do any harm. But if you squeezed in some more spinach and maybe some cashews throughout your day, you probably wouldn’t need it.
