Magnesium Nootropic Effects – Memory-Enhancing Benefits of this Brain Supplement

Magnesium (MG) is a chemical element and alkaline earth metal, making up 13% of the mass of the planet.

Magnesium is also found in every cell the human body.  In fact, it is the eleventh most abundant element by mass and its ions are essential to all living cells.

You may not think of Magnesium as a nootropic, but scientists at MIT recently discovered a link between brain magnesium levels and cognitive function. Increasing magnesium can enhance working memory, facilitate synaptic plasticity, boost long-term memory formation and improve learning.

Magnesium is also useful in a nootropic stack as it can prevent excitotoxicity which may occur when neurons are over-stimulated. If you are feeling agitated, restless or anxious when using nootropics, adding a Magnesium supplement can improve your results.

This supplement plays a major role in manipulating important biological compounds like ATP, DNA, and RNA. Hundreds of enzymes require Magnesium ions in order to function.

This supplement is also included in laxatives, antacids, and in other situations which require the stabilization of abnormal nerve excitation and blood vessel spasms is required (eclampsia treatments, for example). The supplement tastes sour and can even be used to provide a natural tartness to fresh mineral water.

Magnesium

Essential Mineral

Memory

Mood

Sleep Quality

How It Works:

• Supports learning and memory
• Reduces stress & anxiety response
• Improves sleep quality & Restless Leg Syndrome

Dosage:

Between 200 - 500 mg per day

Safety:

Rated Likely Safe

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Magnesium Effects:

Nutritional Magnesium is involved in functions as varied as energy production, oxygen uptake, central nervous system function, electrolyte balance, glucose metabolism, muscle activity, and even heart function.

It is an integral part of the energy and protein processes within the body. This includes helping to transport ATP between the cells and even the heart.

It also functions by helping to maintain the proper electrolyte balance and the construction of cell membranes. This function even helps to build up the internal strength of the heart muscle.

Although many of the actual mechanisms of action for this supplement are still not understood, we do know that a lack of Magnesium can be a big problem. There will not be enough ATP molecules. The sodium balance of the body becomes a problem. Electrolytes start to malfunction.

Individual cell membranes do not function effectively and communication between the cells breaks down. Calcium, Sodium, and other elements are sent to places where they are normally not expected. All of this can lead to cells spending too much time in an overactive state, chemically speaking. This weakens the cells and the body as a whole.

While most of the Magnesium you consume does not end up reaching your brain cells, some of it will make it across the Blood Brain Barrier and be taken up by brain cells. Dietary sources of magnesium are particularly ineffective at transporting to the brain, but a new research molecule called Magnesium Threonate has much better transit across this barrier.

A 2010 study on this novel compound published in Neuron stated that administering this supplement to rats lead to enhanced learning abilities and memory. The mechanism of action is attributed to the fact that Magnesium increased the number of presynaptic release sites while simultaneously reducing their release probability.

This occurred in conjunction with an up-regulation of NMDA receptors, leading to enhanced synaptic plasticity. The result is more efficient brain communication and better encoding of memories both in the short-term and long-term.

Magnesium Benefits:

There is a wide range of benefits that have been attributed to Magnesium. This supplement is actually required by the body to properly digest food. Therefore, it can help to alleviate gastrointestinal discomfort and disease.

It acts as a co-enzymes to help break down food and assimilate the nutrients into the body. Plus, it aids in the production of hydrochloric acid in the stomach and even triggers the healthy production of bile in the liver.

Another important benefit of this supplement is the regulation of healthy blood sugar levels. Magnesium is used as part of more than 300 essential metabolic reactions and deficiency in this mineral has been directly linked to insulin resistance, which in turn can lead to diabetes and other chronic health conditions.

Magnesium is essential to maintaining a healthy heart. This is because it helps in the proper and efficient transport of Potassium, Calcium, and other important nutrients and chemicals across cell membranes. These nutrients are thought to promote healthy nerve impulses, muscle contraction, and even normal heart rhythm.

Magnesium is also critical for maintaining healthy bones. Despite its lack of media attention in this regard, it is much more important in this area than even Calcium. About half of the body’s supply of Magnesium is stored in the bones. Plus, it also acts as a co-factor with both Calcium and Vitamin D to maintain and strengthen your bone structure.

Magnesium Dosage:

The recommended daily allowance of Magnesium for adults is approximately 400 mg per day. However, a number of studies also show that many people are actually Magnesium deficient, so it might not be a bad idea to increase your dosage even more. Of course, you should definitely start out at or even below the RDA level and only increase as you become more familiar with the effects of this supplement.

If you are using Magnesium in a nootropic stack, it is recommended to combine it with Oxiracetam. Magnesium leads to up-regulation of NMDA receptors, but it is also known as an antagonist for these receptors in your brain. Oxiracetam has been found to inhibit this activity which may increase the effectiveness of both of these supplements if they are synergized properly. A typical Oxiracetam dosage is 800 – 1500 mg when combined with Magnesium.

Magnesium Side Effects:

As a natural supplement and element present in nature and within our own body, Magnesium is very safe and it is well-tolerated in normal doses. There are not really any side effects when this supplement is used wisely.

However, when taken in extremely high doses this can cause the levels of Magnesium to build in the body and perhaps lead to an irregular heart beat, low blood pressure, confusion, slowed breathing, coma, and perhaps even death. It should not be taken by people with heart block and those with kidney failure.

Magnesium Review:

Research into Magnesium as a nootropic is still in the early stages, but we do know a lot about how it works already. As the MIT research suggests, this compound can boost short-term and long-term memory capacity once it reaches the brain. Magnesium is also an important nutrient for preventing excitotoxicity in NMDA agonists.

There are many additional health benefits to Magnesium that it is difficult to see a downside to supplementation. The only real caution would be to watch your dosage level and proceed very carefully if you decide to go above the recommended daily dosage levels.

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