The effect of magnesium on sleep

Magnesium is an essential mineral, one of the seven essential macro-minerals that the human body needs in large quantities. The body does not produce magnesium. The magnesium your body needs comes from outside sources. Magnesium is a recommendation made by nutritionists to support patients with better sleep. This nutrient plays an important role in sleep regulation.
You can get magnesium through your diet. Magnesium-rich foods include:
Dark leafy vegetables Seeds and nuts, including sunflower and sesame seeds, cashews and almonds Pumpkins, broccoli and other vegetables Legumes Dairy products Meat Unprocessed Whole Grains Chocolate Coffee Magnesium supplements can also be a very quick, easy and effective source of magnesium.
Magnesium plays an important role in the human body, helping to regulate and facilitate many essential functions. One of magnesium's most important roles is as a promoter of healthy enzyme function. Magnesium is involved in more than 300 different enzyme-related reactions in the body's cells.
In addition, magnesium has many other roles such as:
Plays an important role in energy production, activating ATP, the energy molecule that powers your body's cells, regulating transport calcium, potassium and other essential minerals, which help muscles and nerves work properly and maintain heart rhythm Regulates blood pressure, cholesterol production and blood glucose levels Supports bone growth and protects against bone loss Yes Functions as electrolytes, maintaining fluid balance in the body Helps control the body's stress response system and hormones that increase or decrease stress

Sleep is important for your physiological needs, cognitive function and mood. Without long and satisfying sleep (a state of poor sleep), many processes in your body are disrupted, including performance and reaction times. We sleep about a third of our lives, but up to 48% of people report poor sleep.
There are two main regulatory mechanisms of sleep: circadian processes, which regulate the daily rhythms of the body and brain, and homeostasis.
Part of the hypothalamus that provides direction for sleep-wake control and endocrine secretion. This part of the brain is affected by light and dark patterns and temperature.
Light hitting the retina (your eye) signals the brain to be in the morning and synchronizes individuals to a 24-hour rhythm also known as circadian rhythm.
If you have a lack of sleep or a short period of sleep, your body will work to ensure that the next time you sleep, the depth and length of your sleep will increase.
Poor sleep is often quantified as unsatisfactory quantity or quality of sleep, lasting for a significant period of time. It can include difficulty falling asleep, staying asleep, or waking up before you're ready.
The prevalence of poor sleep increases with age. Some of the age-related sleep changes include decreased sleep duration, decreased sleep efficiency (the percentage of time you actually spend sleeping after going to bed), and decreased shortwave sleep (how much sleep you get from sleep). deepest).
Poor sleep and insomnia are problems that plague most people and can have a negative impact on quality of life and work performance. Consequences of poor or disturbed sleep include impaired memory, increased reaction time, problems with short-term memory, decreased quality of general health, increased health costs, stress, anxiety, and depression. anxiety and depressive symptoms.
Sleep changes and depressive symptoms affect each other. Disturbed sleep can be a symptom of a depressive mood, but sleep loss can also lead to a depressive mood. Some breathing disorders, such as sleep apnea, are strongly associated with depressive sleep behaviors. Sleep apnea is associated with impaired cognitive function and daytime sleepiness.
Chronic sleep deprivation (longer than a week) has been shown to alter neurotransmitter receptor systems, particularly those that manage serotonin and cortisol. These are the same systems that are altered when depressive symptoms are reported. Chronic sleep deprivation can lead to symptoms of depression, possibly due to neurochemical changes occurring in the brain.
Circadian rhythm disturbances can also lead to depressive symptoms. In addition, melatonin, a hormone produced by the pineal gland, helps regulate the sleep-wake-circadian rhythm, which leads to abnormal circadian rhythms and depressive symptoms, especially in the elderly.

Many interventions can control poor sleep, including using magnesium supplements as a natural and healthy option. Clinical evidence generally supports the safety and effectiveness of magnesium supplementation as it relates to sleep aid.
The effects of magnesium on neural functions and sleep behavior are not fully understood, but we do know that magnesium plays an essential role as a natural antagonist of NMDA (N) receptors -Methyl-D-aspartic acid) of the brain, usually a stimulant. Magnesium is also an agonist of the neurotransmitter GABA (Gamma-aminobutyric acid), which plays an important role in regulating sleep and helping to calm your body's nerve activity. Essentially, magnesium provides benefits by supporting the healthy function of your central nervous system and these pathways may account for magnesium's mood-supporting benefits.
Magnesium supplementation has also been shown to support healthy cortisol levels during the first half of sleep. Emotional, physical, or environmental stressors and increased cortisol can keep us awake at night. So maintaining a balanced cortisol level can be the first step towards a good night's sleep.
One reason for magnesium's cortisol-lowering effects may lie in the mineral's NMDA antagonist properties, which support healthy levels of adrenocorticotropin (ACTH) secretion from the anterior pituitary. ACTH supports healthy cortisol secretion from the adrenal cortex by blocking the conversion of cholesterol to pregnenolone, a step that limits the rate at which cortisol is produced.
Under acute or short-term stress, an increase in plasma magnesium concentration is observed, along with an increase in urinary magnesium excretion. The body actually moves magnesium from the intracellular to the extracellular spaces, with the goal of magnesium acting as a defense to offset the negative physiological effects of stress.
High levels of cortisol can change serotonin levels in different parts of the brain. Under chronic or long-term stress, magnesium deficiency has been found, and low magnesium levels are associated with increased noradrenaline in the brain, which increases stress sensitivity.
Feeling stressed can make it difficult to fall asleep and can affect your ability to fall back asleep if you wake up in the middle of the night. Adding magnesium in your diet can help encourage your body to feel more relaxed. According to research, magnesium can act as a cofactor and aid in the effectiveness of serotonin receptor transmission.
The release of serotonin has an impact on the calming of oxytocin and other hormonal activities. The drop in serotonin often caused by chronic stress can be one of the contributing factors to depression-like symptoms and anxiety.
Research shows that magnesium can help improve symptoms of insomnia. In a study of elderly patients with insomnia, taking 500 mg of magnesium daily for eight weeks improved many subjective and objective measures of insomnia, along with:
Falling asleep faster and longer sleep Increases their sleep efficiency, which means they spend more time sleeping in bed Waking up later and having fewer early morning awakenings Increased levels of melatonin, a sleep hormone and serum renin have a role in the regulation of blood pressure There has been experience in reducing serum cortisol levels, the "stress hormone" Other studies have also shown similar results. Patients who received a combination of magnesium, melatonin, and B vitamins for three months also experienced significant positive changes in their insomnia control. The combination reduces insomnia symptoms and side effects, leading to a better quality of life.
Magnesium may also enhance the protective effects of estrogen, a group of hormones known to promote healthy sleep. Estrogen induces the shift of magnesium from the plasma to the cells, allowing it to function effectively in its role in ATP production. Estrogen can also decrease responses to stressors, leading to decreased cortisol production.
Magnesium can also help maintain healthy levels of prolactin, a hormone that supports your ability to cope with psychological stress. It acts as a positive allosteric modulator for oxytocin, binding to the receptor and thus working to minimize the stress response in your body. Studies have also shown that magnesium supplementation is beneficial for supporting healthy melatonin concentration levels, which can positively influence your circadian rhythm control for sleep.
Magnesium plays an essential role in your body's overall health and correlates with healthy sleep patterns. People who have trouble sleeping may want to consider magnesium supplements.

Users should start magnesium supplements with the lowest suggested dose and increase as needed.
For general health, it is recommended to supplement with 100-350 mg per day. Individual dosages will vary, and can vary widely depending on each individual's magnesium levels.
Very large doses of magnesium can cause serious side effects, including: low blood pressure, irregular heartbeat, mental confusion, changes in breathing, coma, and death.
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Reference source: sleepfoundation.org