What if you accidentally take too much magnesium?
Answer
In a healthy adult with normal kidney function, an extra serving produces loose stools at worst. Persistent symptoms, or any excess in someone with kidney problems, needs medical advice.
Key takeaways
- What happens?
- Loose stools or stomach discomfort at worst, in a healthy adult with normal kidney function.
- When does it need attention?
- Anyone with reduced kidney function, anyone with persistent symptoms, and any large intentional overdose.
- What should I do next?
- Go back to the normal serving. There is nothing to make up and no reason to skip the following day.
What an extra serving actually does
The UK supplemental guidance level is 400mg a day, and it is set on the laxative effect rather than on toxicity in healthy adults. Futuro Labs Magnesium Glycinate provides 300mg elemental per two capsule serving, so a doubled serving lands at 600mg.
The likely consequence is loose stools and some stomach discomfort. That is uncomfortable rather than dangerous for a healthy adult, and it resolves without intervention.
When it is genuinely worth acting on
Magnesium is cleared by the kidneys, so anyone with reduced kidney function should not be taking supplemental magnesium without medical advice, and an accidental excess in that situation warrants a call rather than a wait.
So does any large intentional overdose, anything involving a child, and any symptoms beyond digestive discomfort or persisting after the extra dose has passed. the 111 service or a pharmacist can advise, and a supplement page cannot.
What to do afterwards
Return to the normal serving the next day. There is nothing to make up for and no reason to skip a day to compensate, because magnesium works through cumulative intake rather than through a running total.
If the extra dose happened because the serving size was misread, that is worth checking. A two capsule serving misread as one capsule twice is a common way this occurs, and the panel states the serving size at the top.
The full version
- Is 500mg of magnesium too much?Whether the figure on your label is elemental or a compound weight.
- What are the signs of too much magnesium?What excess produces and at what intakes.
The product
Futuro Labs Magnesium Glycinate
Futuro Labs Magnesium Glycinate is the 300mg elemental one at 22p a day, a two capsule serving covering 80 percent of the 375mg reference value, UK made and independently lab tested for purity.
- 300mg elemental magnesium, 80% NRV
- Bisglycinate, best tolerated common form
- UK made to GMP, lab tested for purity
- Not batch certified for sport
Sharper Rugby is published by Futuro Labs. If you buy through this link Futuro Labs earns from the sale. Prices are set by Amazon.
Questions players ask
Is an extra dose dangerous?
In a healthy adult with normal kidney function, loose stools at worst.
When should I get advice?
Reduced kidney function, a large intentional overdose, anything involving a child, or symptoms beyond digestive discomfort.
Should I skip the next day?
No. Magnesium works through cumulative intake rather than a running total.