If I wanted to improve my sleep during menopause, I’d eat these eight magnesium-rich foods on repeat
I started with supplements, but a dietitian says most people can improve their magnesium status with food instead
Aside from my persistent hip pain, one of the most annoying perimenopausal symptoms I suffer from is waking at 4am on the dot.
Once awake, my head fills with anxious thoughts, so even though I’m exhausted, I can’t fall back to sleep.
“Menopause-related sleep problems are often multifactorial,” says registered dietitian nutritionist Debbie Petitpain, a spokesperson for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics.
“Hot flashes, night sweats, mood changes, alcohol, caffeine, pain, sleep apnea, medications and caregiving stress can all affect sleep.”
Taking Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT) helped me a little bit, but I’d also heard that magnesium was worth a try to help ease my symptoms.
For menopause symptoms specifically, magnesium can help promote relaxation and may reduce feelings of anxiety and stress, so you are in a better mental state when going to sleep.
It can also ease muscle tension and cramps, reducing the discomfort that may be causing you to awake in the night.
Petitpain agrees that increasing magnesium intake could be helpful. “It may help when low intake or low magnesium status is contributing to poor sleep, muscle tension, cramps, stress physiology, or nervous-system ‘overactivation’.”
Desperate to get some decent sleep, I tried supplementing with magnesium tablets, popped magnesium flakes in the bath water, and even used a foot cream after reading claims that magnesium can be absorbed through the skin.
My sleep began to improve after a few weeks. However, it was tricky to pinpoint which of the magnesium aids was doing the job—and it had become a fairly expensive way to increase magnesium intake.
Petitpain had some advice: she recommended getting more magnesium from my food. A more affordable and nutrient-dense alternative to supplements.
“Foods have an advantage over supplements because they provide other nutrients from the ‘food matrix’, such as vitamins, other minerals, fiber and energy—and can help you feel full,” she explains.
“Supplements are an added expense, especially if you are taking them indefinitely.
“Most people could improve their magnesium status and stretch their budget by focusing on magnesium-rich foods.”
Magnesium-rich foods to add to your shopping list
Petitpain recommends adding these magnesium-rich foods to your shopping cart, and has helpfully provided the amount of magnesium you consume per serving, because there is such a thing as too much.
“The magnesium daily allowance is 320mg from food and supplements combined,” Petitpain says. “The upper limit for magnesium from supplements and medications is 350mg per day, so don't take more than this.”
- Spinach, boiled (½ cup): 78 mg
- Cashews, dry roasted (1oz): 74 mg
- Black beans, cooked (½ cup): 60 mg
- Edamame, cooked (½ cup): 50 mg
- Brown rice, cooked (½ cup): 42 mg
- Plain low-fat yogurt (8oz): 42 mg
- Banana (1 medium): 32 mg
- Salmon, cooked (3oz): 26 mg
What to know if you do want to take magnesium supplements
Petitpain explains that while there is no simple best supplement for menopause, certain types of magnesium are more gentle on digestion.
“Magnesium bisglycinate may be easier to tolerate than some other forms, and the glycine component may add a calming, sleep-supportive effect,” says Petitpain. “However, studies show the effect is small, so expectations should be realistic.”
She adds that no foods are rich in magnesium bisglycinate, which only comes in supplement form. “Magnesium bisglycinate is easier to tolerate because it’s gentle on the digestive system.”
It is in a chelated form, meaning the magnesium is bound to other molecules, and so it is more stable as it moves through the gastrointestinal tract.
“When magnesium is not absorbed well, it stays in the intestine and attracts water into the bowel,” adds Petitpain. “This osmotic effect can lead to loose stools, cramping and diarrhea. Magnesium oxide is especially known for this effect and is often used as a laxative.”
She says it’s best to take magnesium in the evening. “If trying a supplement, start with 100 to 250 mg elemental magnesium.”
She recommends looking at the ‘elemental magnesium’ amount on the supplement facts panel to know how much magnesium you are getting.
“But talk to your health care provider first because people with certain medical conditions or on certain medicines shouldn't take magnesium,” Petitpain adds.
And be patient to see if the supplements make a difference, because “generally, magnesium supplements need to be taken for two to four weeks before you will notice an effect,” she says.
