Does Magnesium Make You Poop? Answers & Tips

Whereas most individuals can get all the magnesium they want (anyplace from 320 to 420 milligrams per day) by consuming magnesium-rich foods—together with nuts, seeds, leafy greens, beans, entire grains, salmon, bananas, and potatoes—some folks may have a magnesium complement in the event that they’re poor or have sure well being issues, like constipation, per the National Institutes of Health (NIH).

This is the lowdown on how magnesium helps you poop, one of the best type to take for constipation, how a lot to take, and when it is time to go to your doc about being backed up.

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Does magnesium assist constipation?

If you happen to’re having bother pooping, magnesium might help by making your stool softer and simpler to move. “Within the GI tract, non-absorbed magnesium is an osmotic laxative, which suggests it secretes extra water and electrolytes into the intestine to assist issues transfer ahead and enhance constipation,” says Elena Ivanina, DO, MPH, founding father of the Center for Integrative Gut Health in New York Metropolis.

Magnesium is definitely a typical ingredient in over-the-counter (OTC) laxatives like MiraLax, Milk of Magnesia, and Citroma. However you may get the identical advantages simply from taking a magnesium supplement, says Dr. Ivanina. You simply have to take the correct sort of magnesium.

One of the best magnesium for constipation relief contains:

• Magnesium oxide: This can be your greatest guess, in keeping with current pointers from the American College of Gastroenterology and the American Gastroenterological Society. There’s good proof to indicate it really works to alleviate persistent constipation, so if including extra fiber to your weight loss plan is not slicing it, you possibly can strive magnesium oxide earlier than transferring on to a stimulant laxative or different merchandise.
• Magnesium citrate: This sort can relieve occasional constipation by softening your stool and inspiring your intestinal muscle mass to maneuver poop out, says the Cleveland Clinic.
• Magnesium sulfate: It additionally has laxative properties that may assist you to poop, per the Mayo Clinic.

Basically, you should not take magnesium or different laxatives for greater than every week except you have been advised by your physician to take action, says the National Library of Medicine (NLM). If you happen to’re usually counting on laxatives that can assist you poop, that may very well be an indication of an underlying GI drawback that must be addressed.

Different forms of magnesium and their makes use of

There are literally a bunch of several types of magnesium dietary supplements, and differing types can be utilized for various well being issues. Listed below are the commonest, which you’ll typically discover within the vitamin aisle at your native drugstore:

• Magnesium chloride (for low magnesium ranges, per the NIH)
• Magnesium aspartate (for low magnesium ranges, per the NIH)
• Magnesium glycinate (which can help temper and sleep, per the Mayo Clinic)
• Magnesium hydroxide (which can relieve heartburn, and also can have a laxative impact, per the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. This sort can also be discovered within the OTC medicine Milk of Magnesia.)
• Magnesium lactate (for low magnesium ranges, per the NIH)
• Magnesium malate (which can assist with muscle ache, per Mount Sinai)
• Magnesium sulfate (which can assist with muscle ache, per the Mayo Clinic)

How a lot magnesium ought to I take for constipation?

Most magnesium dietary supplements are available in 500-milligram tablets or capsules, per Michigan Medicine. Most specialists advocate beginning with 500 milligrams, however ask your physician about the correct quantity for you. Dr. Ivanina recommends taking it within the night (perhaps after dinner, as a result of it may trigger irritation if you happen to take it on an empty abdomen). “Basically it could possibly typically assist produce bowel actions the following day,” she says.

The NLM additionally recommends taking magnesium with 8 ounces of water if you happen to’re constipated, as a result of downing some further fluids also can assist transfer issues alongside. And if you happen to’re on any prescription meds, take them a minimum of 2 hours aside from the magnesium to keep away from any potential interactions.

Can you’re taking an excessive amount of magnesium?

Whereas it is doable to take an excessive amount of magnesium, the common wholesome particular person would want to take quite a bit (assume: 5,000 milligrams or extra per day) in an effort to run into issues like magnesium toxicity, which may doubtlessly be deadly. However even reasonably excessive doses (like over the really helpful 500 milligrams per day) can mess together with your abdomen and make you crampy, nauseous, or offer you diarrhea, per the NIH.

Different potential indicators of magnesium toxicity embody the next, per the NIH:

• Nausea
• Vomiting
• Facial flushing
• Urine retention
• Lethargy
• Muscle weak point
• Shortness of breath

Name your physician and search emergency medical care if you happen to really feel any of those results after taking magnesium.

Dangers or unwanted effects of an excessive amount of magnesium

Once more, excessive doses of magnesium can mess together with your abdomen and make you queasy or nauseous. And since it really works as a laxative, there is a good probability that overdoing it will provide you with diarrhea. Doses over above 5,000 milligrams per day may very well be poisonous, per the NIH.

It is particularly necessary to test in together with your physician earlier than taking magnesium when you have a kidney drawback, as a result of the kidneys are answerable for eliminating extra quantities of the mineral, says Dr. Ivanina. (So if they don’t seem to be working in addition to they need to, further magnesium may construct up in your physique.)

Lastly, understand that magnesium can work together with different drugs. These embody the next, per the NIH:

• Biphosphonates, used to deal with osteoporosis
• Antibiotics
• Diuretics
• Prescription acid reflux disease drugs
• Very excessive doses of zinc dietary supplements

If you happen to take any of those drugs, test together with your physician earlier than including a magnesium complement to your routine.

Different methods to poop simpler

Magnesium dietary supplements might help you poop if you’re actually backed up. However if you happen to’re coping with common or frequent constipation, life-style modifications is likely to be wanted to actually clear up your poop drawback. On this case, attempt to:

• Eat a high-fiber weight loss plan: Goal to get between 22 and 34 grams of fiber per day, from meals like beans, entire grains, fruits, and greens. Choices like berries, peaches, apricots, plums, and floor flaxseeds are particularly good for getting issues transferring, per the NLM.
• Drink loads of fluids: Drinking enough water and/or different hydrating drinks could make your stool softer and simpler to move. In actual fact, an older examine in Hepatogastroenterology¹ discovered that ingesting round 8 cups of liquids per day with a high-fiber weight loss plan improved constipation greater than a high-fiber weight loss plan alone.
• Train usually: Transferring your physique can maintain issues transferring in your intestine, too, per Harvard Health Publishing. Attempt to do one thing lively day-after-day, even when it is simply taking a stroll round your neighborhood or on the treadmill, or following a yoga or Pilates video.
• Examine your place: Squatting, leaning again, elevating your ft, and even rocking back and forth on the bathroom could make it simpler to poop, in keeping with the Cleveland Clinic. (Squatty Potty, anybody?)

When to see a physician about constipation

All of us get constipated occasionally and it is normally no large deal. However you must let your physician know if you happen to’ve gone greater than three days with out pooping, are in numerous ache, have blood in your poop, or are constipated and likewise throwing up, in keeping with the NLM. These may very well be indicators of an underlying GI difficulty that must be handled.

FAQ

Is it okay to take magnesium every day?

It is typically protected to take 500 milligrams of magnesium daily. That mentioned, needing to take magnesium day-after-day in an effort to poop is a pink flag that one thing else is likely to be occurring. You possibly can have an underlying GI drawback that must be addressed, otherwise you may simply have to make some life-style modifications (like extra fiber!) to help higher bowel habits, says Dr. Ivanina.

Can magnesium soften your stool?

Magnesium oxide is an osmotic laxative, which curbs constipation by bringing extra water into your intestine, which helps make your stool softer and simpler to move. Although bear in mind: it is not categorized as a stool softener (like docusate sodium), which is a special sort of drugs that “lowers the floor rigidity of stool, permitting extra water to simply enter the stool,” says Dr. Ivanina.

What’s the greatest stool softener for constipation?

Seems, stool softeners like docusate sodium (i.e., Colace) really aren’t that efficient for serving to you poop, so they don’t seem to be normally really helpful by GI docs, says Dr. Ivanina. Magnesium oxide, which is a kind of osmotic laxative, is definitely a better option, and the one which’s really helpful by the American School of Gastroenterologists and the American Gastroenterological Society.