Magnesium for children is essential for their growth, development, and ensuring they get a restful night's sleep. The mineral supports bone and teeth health, muscle function, and regulates melatonin to act as a natural sleep aid.
Getting sufficient magnesium during childhood is essential for nutrient absorption, digestion, immunity, DNA formation, regular bowel movements, balanced blood sugar, muscle and nervous system function, healthy bones and teeth, concentration, and mood.
Initially, signs of magnesium deficiency in children are loss of appetite, nausea, vomiting, fatigue and weakness. When deficiency is severe, symptoms can include numbness, tingling, muscle spasms or cramps, and severe symptoms related to irregular heartbeats and seizures.
Vitamin D and magnesium supplementation in children with ADHD was effective on conduct problems, social problems, and anxiety/shy scores compared with placebo intake but did not affect psychosomatic problems scores, significantly.
I usually recommend giving magnesium 1-2 hours before bed. If you notice that your child seems to have a harder time getting to sleep, it might be that they metabolize magnesium at a different rate. And, that's fine! Give it to your child around lunch time to allow more time to process it.
Healthy nervous system and mood.
Magnesium acts as a relaxant and can help improve depression, anxiety, irritability, poor attention and bad sleep. Sadly, these are all conditions that I am seeing more frequently in my practice. Some studies have also linked low magnesium to ADHD.
People with ADHD often lack magnesium and zinc and supplement of these vitamins may improve hyperactivity, impulsivity, attention and memory. Several studies have shown that, at large, people with ADHD have less magnesium (Mg) and zinc (Zn) in their bodies than the control groups that don't have ADHD.
Although children with ADHD may be more likely to have lower levels of vitamin D, zinc, magnesium, and iron, it cannot be stated that these lower levels caused ADHD. However, supplementing areas of deficiency may be a safe and justified intervention.
Magnesium L Threonate (or magnesium citrate in those who can only take gummies) are the preparations that has been most studied and show the highest benefit for ADHD, cognition, mood, and anxiety.
Yes, deficiency can also impact behaviour!
Other symptoms of magnesium deficiency include moodiness (like irritability or hyperactivity), difficulty concentrating, insomnia, and anxiety (6). Studies have shown higher intakes of magnesium to be associated with improvements in the behaviours above (7).
Magnesium deficiency can be caused by several factors, but, in the case of our young ones, the main factor is usually a poor diet due to lack of nutritious food. Stress, intensive exercise, and regular consumption of refined sugar and carbohydrates are other common factors that deplete the body of magnesium.
Magnesium soothes the central nervous system and acts as a sedative. It helps us fall asleep and stay asleep longer, waking more rested and better able to learn and cope with daily stress. Children's sleep can be disturbed by what are commonly known as 'growing pains'.
The tolerable upper intake level for magnesium in supplement form is 65 mg per day for children ages 1 to 3, and 110 mg per day for children ages 4 to 8. That's the maximum amount of magnesium added to a normal daily diet considered safe by the Food and Nutrition Board of the Institute of Medicine.
Some evidence indicates that magnesium could also be involved in neurological diseases such as attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder and autism. However, no direct study has been published to confirm this assumption.
B vitamin deficiency
Vitamin B9 is essential for the production of neurotransmitters such as serotonin, which helps control impulsive behavior and improve mental focus. A lack of vitamins B12 and B6 can lead to hyperactivity. Supplementing with B vitamins helps improve ADHD symptoms in children who are deficient.
For example, levels of vitamins B1, B6, B12, A and D are often reported to be low in ASD children.
ADHD Supplement: Magnesium
This mineral won't directly improve attention, but it can calm hyperactivity and agitation, which compromise attention. I find magnesium helpful for children who have a “rebound effect” after their stimulant medication wears off.
The good news is that some studies (study links, a and b) have identified how magnesium may ease certain symptoms of stress and anxiety. Here are the facts: Magnesium may help to control the chemical messengers (neurotransmitters) in the brain, resulting in a calming effect on the body.
Magnesium deficiency can cause a wide variety of features including hypocalcaemia, hypokalaemia and cardiac and neurological manifestations. Chronic low magnesium state has been associated with a number of chronic diseases including diabetes, hypertension, coronary heart disease, and osteoporosis.
If we don't get enough magnesium from our food, we are more vulnerable to high levels of stress and anxiety. More stress can lead us to lose even more magnesium through the kidneys in a process of urinary extraction. Caffeine and alcohol can accelerate the rate of magnesium excretion.
Magnesium certainly helps with sleep and relaxation — big challenges for adults and children with ADHD — and should be discussed with your doctor. Baza, Farida El, et al. “Magnesium Supplementation in Children with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder.” Egyptian Journal of Medical Human Genetics, vol.
In addition to what you get from food, the highest dose you should take of magnesium supplements is: 65 mg/day for children ages 1-3. 110 mg/day for children ages 4-8. 350 mg/day for adults and children ages 9 and up.
The best forms of magnesium are magnesium citrate and magnesium oil for kids, which are used topically.