Magnesium vs. melatonin – which one is better?
Overall, healthy sleep is one of the most important things to prioritize in order to optimize life quality. So much, that there are countless sleep supplements on the market to help aid this pursuit, with the main one being melatonin. But as much traction as melatonin has gained over the years, magnesium has quickly proven itself as a top-performing supplemental agent: one that promotes better sleep by targeting/supporting much more than just your circadian rhythm.
Magnesium Sleep Supplements – Why Magnesium Is Better Than Melatonin To Attain A Good Night’s Sleep
In the day and age of hustle, screen time, and constant movement, it stands to reason why so many people are opting for natural sleep supplements to help them sleep at night. In fact, some data estimates that nearly half the population suffers from some degree of insomnia. Even more, about 9M people in America alone rely on prescription sleep aids or a sleep supplement such as the all-too-common melatonin to combat sleep challenges.
That said, the human body is an incredibly complex biochemical machine, and this becomes particularly apparent when something starts not working right – in this case, facing the harsh consequences of poor sleep quality. Now, we may not have a cure-all solution to solidify quality sleep every night, which is why you still see magnesium vs. melatonin circulating. But if there's one thing for sure, magnesium sleep supplements are certainly a proven, natural, and effective aid that helps us attain the fundamentally shared goal of rest. In addition, yes, that includes being far above the once renowned melatonin and for several more sleep-enhancing reasons than just one.
Magnesium Vs. Melatonin
Before diving into why magnesium is a better sleep supplement than melatonin, it's important to understand what each of them are and how they affect the body. Beginning with melatonin, this is a naturally produced hormone that the body creates, and its main role involves regulating your sleep/wake cycles. Organically, melatonin decreases during the daytime and increases when it gets dark to signal to your body that it is time for bed. When taking a melatonin supplement, all you are doing is increasing melatonin production to help promote faster sleep. This can be great on the surface for those with sleep disorders such as insomnia, but it does not concurrently help promote overall health that the magnesium counterpart happens to do.
What Is Magnesium?
Magnesium is one of the 24 essential minerals that your body needs to operate at peak performance. Generally speaking, magnesium is what helps fuel your body's cells, activates ATP, supports the stress-response system, regulates the transport of other minerals like potassium and calcium, and much more. But the most amazing part is that aside from its many body-enhancing functions, magnesium is also a wonderful sleep-time asset to help your mind and body become aligned for quality sleep.
Since magnesium is something that the body does not produce naturally, you need to be mindful of absorbing enough magnesium-rich foods like nuts, seeds, whole grains, spinach, and dark leafy greens. Or, you can gain a fast and effective magnesium boost by adding vetted magnesium supplements to your dietary intake, all while enjoying the innate perk of natural sleep assistance that comes along with it.
The Benefits of Magnesium & Magnesium Sleep Supplements
There is no denying that magnesium and melatonin are very known and frequently used terms in conversational passing. However, even though melatonin is more associated with sleep support, many people may be surprised to find that magnesium and resources like magnesium sleep supplements are a viable sleep aid themselves. Backed by supplement study after study, magnesium has been proven to improve sleep performance across the board – promoting faster sleep times, fewer midnight/early wakeups, and optimizing full-body rest. The primary reason for this is because not only does this natural supplement offer nutritional value, but that becomes the catalyst for several benefits that improve sleep in direct causation along the way.
- Boost GABA Levels
Gamma-Aminobutyric Acid, aka GABA, is a vital amino acid that holds a key role in sleep health. Overall, the primary function is to help power down your brain for the night and slow neurotransmitter communication so you can get the rest you need. When these levels are off balance or too low, that is when your circadian rhythm becomes out of whack and insomnia kicks in. The good news is that magnesium has been found to help maintain healthy GABA levels, ultimately keeping your body in a good circadian cycle and allowing for deeper, quality-rich sleep.
- Magnesium Sleep Supplements Naturally Regulate Stress & Anxiety
Unlike melatonin, which merely makes you sleepy, magnesium is well known to regulate stress and anxiety, which are two core culprits that tend to keep people up at night. According to several magnesium supplement studies, increasing your magnesium intake equates to better, more balanced sympathetic/ parasympathetic nervous systems - two critical systems for healthy sleep. Better yet, a German study found a decrease in sleep disorders, depression, and irritability when these two systems reached an equilibrium through the use of natural magnesium supplements.
- Relieves Restless Leg Syndrome
If you are someone suffering from restless leg syndrome, you are not going to find relief with melatonin. However, you certainly can by taking magnesium sleep supplements. All in all, restless leg syndrome is a disorder that causes a disconcerting sensation and uncontrollable urges to move your legs – especially at night when you are trying to sleep. Though you should always consult a doctor first if you are facing this disturbing sleep challenge, find some peace knowing that magnesium is a highly effective and natural form of therapy to treat this issue. Not only do magnesium supplements relax the muscles to help relax the legs, but it also has been shown to reduce things like leg cramps and leg aches as well.
- Improves Digestion & Overall Gut Health
Does your gut tend to keep you up at night? Whether it be heartburn, indigestion, or any other uncomfortable conditions that keep you awake, you can easily help restore your digestive system back to a state of relaxation with the aid of magnesium sleep supplements. Again, melatonin can be great to help you fall asleep quickly, but that notion becomes null and void if you wake up feeling digestive distress. Instead, leverage magnesium as it is a key nutrient known to relax the stomach and intestinal muscles in addition to neutralizing stomach acids. The result? You attain better gut health and a sleep aid that promises quality sleep by targeting much more than just your internal clock.
Aside from restorative sleep, additional benefits of magnesium supplements include whole-body pain relief, improved attention span, better athletic performance, better mood, stronger bone health, improved metabolic health, and stronger cardiovascular health. This is all due to magnetism supporting over 300 enzymes in your body to ensure it is working properly.
