FAQ Episode 83: Revisiting the vital role of magnesium in migraine management

Frequently Asked Questions about Natural Migraine Relief

I’ve often said that if I could recommend only one key nutrient for migraine management, it would be magnesium.¹ This vital mineral is asn integral component of over 600 enzymatic reactions in the body, particularly ATP energy production throughout the body, and also in many biochemical pathways that are critical for vascular or neurological health. I was reminded of this while I read the latest Substack post by “Unbekoming”, titled “Hidden Deficiency: Unlocking the Magnesium Mystery.” This non-partisan blog offers some of the most diverse and instructive collections of postings and interviews about science and health on the Substack universe. Find it at https://substack.com/@unbekoming , and its free to subscribe:

The above referenced article gives a great general review of the magic of magnesium. If you have migraines, you owe it to yourself to commit to maximizing your whole body magnesium levels. This article does a great general job of outlining the whole body benefits of magnesium, but is a bit shy on the ‘how to do it’ details. I discuss magnesium in great detail in my Natural Migraine Relief course (especially Lessons 10 & 11: Cellular Energy deficits as a Migraine Root cause. Parts I & II.)

Two quick stats on magnesium:

• ~60% of Americans are significantly magnesium deficient. Almost all migrainuers fall in this category.

• 50% of us do not get enough magnesium in our diet to support day to day basic needs, not to mention the amount to regain lost ground or to manage the extra demands added by other migraine precipitating factors.

Here is the condensed version from Lessons 10 & 11 on how to augment your magnesium levels with oral therapy:

“I usually recommend starting with magnesium citrate powder, where you can easily titrate the dose upward (one scoop, then one and a thirds scoop, etc.) every 4-5 days. Start with about 300 mg mixed in water or juice, usually taken in the morning. Increase the daily dose by ~50-100 mg every 4-5 days, until you get to the point where you are having 2-3 easy to pass, but not too loose bowel movements/day (your ‘bowel tolerence’.) Hold this daily dose until you find that you are having more frequent bowel movements as your tissue levels get closer to normal, or back off some if the BMs are too loose.

At that point you can consider gradually reducing your dose each week until you get back to the 300-350 mg amount per day, or whatever might be your maintenance dose. Keep in mind that the daily allowance for adult women is ~320-350 mg/day. This may also be a point where you could substitute magnesium L-threonate at a maintenance dose of 125-250 mg/day to enhance brain benefits.”

You can use any of the magnesium forms on the market, but using the powdered citrate form initially makes it easy to titrate the dosage up or down as you “fill up the magnesium tank”, and then taper to maintenance dose. “Natural Calm” is an easy to find brand for this form. Later, if you switch to magnesium-L-threonate you may not need as much per day to manage migraines, more like 250 mg/day, as this form readily crosses the blood brain barrier.

Please keep in mind that in cases of severe depletion, this process of comprehensive whole-body magnesium repletion can take up to 6-8 months of consistent supplementation. The initial serum and cellular changes that benefit migraines may be seen as soon as 2-3 weeks, but full tissue restoration of optimal magnesium typically requires a sustained approach, so please do not back off magnesium repletion too quickly!

Having a healthy level of magnesium can even out your blood pressure, reduce anxiety, help attain deep sleep, keep your bowel regular, control blood sugar, ease muscle cramps, reduce inflammation, moderate PMS, optimize exercise performance, promote bone density, as well as reduce migraines and improve pain tolerence. If you’re looking at a supplement targeted at migraines, I’d put magnesium at the top of your list. If you’re taking a more comprehensive migraine formula like Brain Ritual, you will already be getting 325 mg magnesium/day, so the amount of magnesium you’ll need to add may be minimal.

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1. Deficiencies of many nutrients can push cellular dysfunction into the migraine zone. While I would rank the role of magnesium as first among equals, there are many others to consider. Check out the post FAQ Episode 40: Vitamin Deficiencies predict migraine risk, especially my reference to the free portion of Lesson 6: Integrative Therapy for Migraines about what I call the “Basic Four” nutrients for migraine.

My course Natural Migraine Relief has detailed discussions on how to understand and manage other key nutrients and non-drug therapies for migraine, like:

-riboflavin

-methyl B12, pyridoxil-5-phosphate and methylfolate

-trimethylglycine

-thiamine

-iron

-CoQ10

-Vitamins D3 and K-2

-curcumin

-CBD

-omega-3 fatty acids

-Di-indoylmethane (DIM)

-Vitamin A

-glutathione

-Vitamin C

-support for bio-identicals like estrogen, progesterone and testosterone

-DHEA, pregnenelone and adrenal adaptogens

-melatonin

-histamine

-quercitin

-butterbur

-pine bark extract

-L-theanine

-Zinc

-digestive enzymes

-SAMe

-niacin

-iodine

-thyoid hormone

and much, much more. For more information on all that we cover in its 25 lessons, take a look at FAQ Episode 42: What can I learn from the Natural Migraine Relief course?