Magnesium Glycinate Is Best for Sleep and Relaxation

Magnesium is an essential dietary mineral that may help you relax. It's in my list of top tier geroprotectors, and it can also function as a nootropic. Magnesium comes in many forms, some of which are more effective than others at promoting calm, improving sleep quality, and increasing focus the next day.

Magnesium Oxide is one of the most common forms, but it tends to be less absorbable than some others. Magnesium Citrate is more absorbable, making it a more effective geroprotector. Another absorbable form is Magnesium Glycinate, which is Magnesium reacted with Glycine, an amino acid. This particular form may also function as a nootropic.

With any absorbable form of Magnesium, supplementation may provide a notable decrease to blood pressure in cases of high blood pressure, according to multiple peer-reviewed studies on humans:

• Effect of magnesium supplementation on blood pressure: a meta-analysis. In 2012, this meta-analysis of 22 studies found that Magnesium "appears to achieve a small but clinically significant reduction in [blood pressure]".
  
  
• Oral Magnesium Supplementation Reduces Ambulatory Blood Pressure In Patients With Mild Hypertension. In 2009, this study found that Magnesium "is associated with small but consistent ambulatory [blood pressure] reduction in patients with mild hypertension".
  
  
• Effects Of Oral Magnesium Supplementation On ... Blood Pressure In Normo-magnesemic Nondiabetic Overweight Korean Adults. In 2009, this study found that Magnesium "does not reduce [blood pressure] ... in normo-magnesemic nondiabetic overweight people ... however, it appears that magnesium supplementation may lower [blood pressure] in healthy adults with higher [blood pressure]".
  
  
• The Effect Of Lowering Blood Pressure By Magnesium Supplementation In Diabetic Hypertensive Adults With Low Serum Magnesium Levels: A Randomized, Double-blind, Placebo-controlled Clinical Trial. In 2009, this study found that Magnesium "significantly reduces [systolic blood pressure] and [diastolic blood pressure] in diabetic hypertensive adults with hypomagnesaemia".

Supplementation with absorbable forms of Magnesium may also provide a subtle increase to sleep quality, according to these peer-reviewed studies on humans:

• Magnesium supplementation improves indicators of low magnesium status and inflammatory stress in adults older than 51 years with poor quality sleep. In 2010, this study found "an association between magnesium status and sleep quality that needs further study to definitively determine whether a low magnesium status is a cause or an effect of poor sleep quality".
  
  
• Oral Mg(2+) supplementation reverses age-related neuroendocrine and sleep EEG changes in humans. In 2002, this study found that Magnesium "partially reverses sleep EEG and nocturnal neuroendocrine changes occurring during aging".

Supplementation with Magnesium Glycinate, which is about 20% Magnesium and 80% Glycine, may provide a further increase to sleep quality, according to these peer-reviewed studies on humans:

• The effects of glycine on subjective daytime performance in partially sleep-restricted healthy volunteers. In 2012, this study found that Glycine "modulates certain neuropeptides in the [suprachiasmatic nucleus] and this phenomenon may indirectly contribute to improving the occasional sleepiness and fatigue induced by sleep restriction".
  
  
• Glycine ingestion improves subjective sleep quality in human volunteers, correlating with polysomnographic changes. In 2007, this study found that Glycine "seems to produce subjective and objective improvement of the sleep quality in a different way than traditional hypnotic drugs such as benzodiazepines".
  
  
• Subjective effects of glycine ingestion before bedtime on sleep quality. In 2006, this study found that Glycine "produced a good subjective feeling after awakening from sleep".

Supplementation with Magnesium may also provide a subtle improvement to aerobic exercise and muscle oxygenation; and a subtle decrease to asthma and blood glucose. Evidence for these effects may not be as reliable. See the Magnesium article at Examine.com and the Glycine article at Examine.com for more studies and details.

Thrivous Serenity

Based on these and other studies, Thrivous developed Serenity Nightly Nootropic. Each serving provides a clinical dose of Magnesium Glycinate, composed of elemental Magnesium and Glycine. Serenity also provides clinical doses of Melatonin and L Theanine. Serenity is available to purchase online in the Thrivous store.