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I posted this in the end of a very old thread where I was not able to sleep the whole night unless I ate 1/2 a bag of white chocolate chips. The only consistent supps I take are 5,000iu VitD and K2 and I wanted to see if anybody else had gotten results like this:

Ok I wanted to post this up to try and help anybody with this same issue I recently started taking 1 capsule (though they recommend 3) of Magnesium L-Threonate (Life Extension Brand) and it has almost completely made my sugar craving go away!! WTF? I was just looking to improve my memory as the other day I mistakingly placed a piece of grass fed steak in one of my kitchen drawers. Idiot.

This is crazy to me because I was taking natural calm and and doing epsom salt baths 3x per week, religiously. Ive also noticed I am more focussed and less sore after lifting and have been able to bump my workout to 3x per week rather than the two days I had been doing.

Only side effect seemed to be going #2 much easier the first couple days. Also I am told that Im sleeping with my mouth wide open now instead of clenched teeth.

Has anybody else experienced this from MgT? Was I simply suffering from a raging Mg deficiency, in spite of the Mg citrate and baths I was taking?

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That is pretty awesome, sugar cravings suck! – Joy Jan 20 2012 at 17:09
My cravings went away with magnesium citrate, but it doesn't really do wonders for sleep. It helps a lot, but doesn't prevent me from waking up at 3-4 am. – Korion Jan 20 2012 at 18:44
@Cory - When do you take the MgT? With or without food? – Dave S. Jan 27 2012 at 14:29
Dave, Ive been taking it at night mostly with a decent sized meal. So last meal of the day has been my usual time. Im still only taking one capsule BTW. – Cory151 Jan 27 2012 at 19:24

3 Answers

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I've been taking Magnesium oxide and its helped me sleep much better. It does relax my muscles quite a bit since often times I wake up to #1 in the night and my muscles are super numb.

Not sure about sugar cravings though. I wonder if its because I use a different variation of mg...

"Magnesium plays an important role in carbohydrate metabolism. It may influence the release and activity of insulin, the hormone that helps control blood glucose (sugar) levels [13]. Low blood levels of magnesium (hypomagnesemia) are frequently seen in individuals with type 2 diabetes. Hypomagnesemia may worsen insulin resistance, a condition that often precedes diabetes, or may be a consequence of insulin resistance. Individuals with insulin resistance do not use insulin efficiently and require greater amounts of insulin to maintain blood sugar within normal levels. The kidneys possibly lose their ability to retain magnesium during periods of severe hyperglycemia (significantly elevated blood glucose). The increased loss of magnesium in urine may then result in lower blood levels of magnesium [4]. In older adults, correcting magnesium depletion may improve insulin response and action [42]."

http://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/magnesium

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Could be, Im not sure though as Ive not tried Mg oxide, to my knowledge. Do you happen to get sugar cravings? – Cory151 Jan 20 2012 at 17:01
yes i do! maybe I should try a differnt mg.... there are differing opinions about the type of mgs and absorbancy...some sources state oxide doesn't get absorbed as well...other says it is the same as others. – PaleoGirl Jan 20 2012 at 17:03
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 I thought Mg oxide had a very low bioavailability... – Dave S. Jan 20 2012 at 17:11
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 I wonder if it has anything to do with the emphasis MgT has in crossing the blood brain barrier better the rest. I guess by making that assumption though Im basically saying that all sugar cravings come from the brain, when I actually dont know if thats true or not. – Cory151 Jan 20 2012 at 17:13
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Vitamin D depletes magnesium so it's not a surprise. I notice when my body is low in magnesium, I feel a bit of brain fog/depression, stiffness in muscles, lower back pain and some heel spur pain. I have to hit a sweet spot with supplementation of calcium and magnesium.

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Almost everything depletes magnesium. stress, carb consumption, exercise, etc. Unlike sodium, we don't store it, so the thought is that back in the cave days, we had plenty of access to magnesium, either from sea water, or minerals in water from streams/dripping water in caves. Sadly, there are few modern sources of the stuff, but we can get some from chocolate and coffee. – raydawg Aug 26 at 10:38
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Interesting. I definitely heard about the sleep/muscle recovery benifits from Magnesium, but not about the sugar cravings.

I tried a magnesium "oil" (spray) from Ancient Minerals for awhile. I used it post-workout as recommended by Mike Mahler (a kettlebell dude). I didn't give it an honest assessment, though I've been interested in supplementing Magnesium again.

I've heard the oil is preferred over capsules because it is better absorbed through the skin, but would love to hear other opinions on that.

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