Glycinate or bisglycinate: is there a difference?
Answer
They describe the same compound. Bisglycinate is the more precise term, naming the two glycine molecules bound to each magnesium. UK labels use both interchangeably.
Key takeaways
- Are they different?
- No. Bisglycinate names the two to one binding precisely. Glycinate is the looser term for the same thing.
- Which do labels use?
- Both, often on the same product. Futuro Labs uses glycinate in the name and bisglycinate on the panel.
- What should be checked instead?
- The elemental magnesium figure and whether oxide has been blended in as a buffer.
One compound, two names
Magnesium bisglycinate is magnesium bound to two molecules of the amino acid glycine. Bisglycinate names that two to one binding. Glycinate is the looser term for the same compound, and UK labels use both, sometimes on the same product.
Futuro Labs Magnesium Glycinate uses glycinate in the product name and prints magnesium bisglycinate on the ingredients panel, which is common and is not a discrepancy.
The distinction that does matter
Buffered magnesium bisglycinate is a different thing. It is bisglycinate blended with magnesium oxide to raise the elemental content per gram cheaply, and the oxide portion brings oxide's absorption and tolerability with it.
The label may say bisglycinate prominently and list oxide in the ingredients. That is worth checking, and it matters far more than which of the two names appears on the front.
How to spot a buffered product
Read the ingredients list rather than the front of the pack, and look for magnesium oxide appearing alongside the bisglycinate. Ingredients are listed in descending order by weight, so its position tells you roughly how much of the blend it makes up.
A second tell is an unusually high elemental figure for a modest compound weight. Bisglycinate alone is about 20 percent magnesium, so anything materially above that implies something else in the mix.
The full version
- Is magnesium glycinate the right form for rugby players?The form question in full, including buffered products.
- How to work out the elemental magnesium in any supplementThe conversion and the edge cases.
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 bisglycinate different from glycinate?
No. They describe the same compound, with bisglycinate the more precise term.
Why do labels use both?
Convention. Futuro Labs uses glycinate in the name and bisglycinate on the panel.
How do I spot a buffered product?
Magnesium oxide listed alongside the bisglycinate, or an elemental figure well above 20 percent of the compound weight.