The Recommended Dietary Allowance (RDA) for magnesium is around 320 mg per day. If levels drop below this, the ramifications can quickly be seen. Many women need a higher magnesium intake than the RDA suggests, particularly if they are being robbed of magnesium by genetic issues, conditions such as thyroid autoimmune disease, or stress.
To know if you need a higher dose, try the “bowel tolerance test” described below. This means you go up in doses every two days until your stool becomes loose.
Some women are so depleted (stress and sugar are common magnesium robbers) that they need as much 1,200 mg per day to replenish their reserves. Once you get a loose stool, back off to a lower dose.
Here is an example:
Day 1: 300 mg per day; regular stool or constipation
Day 2: 300 mg per day; regular stool or constipation
Day 3: 600 mg per day (300 mg in the morning and 300 mg at night); regular stool or constipation
Day 4: 600 mg per day (300 mg in the morning and 300 mg at night); regular stool or constipation
Day 5: 900 mg per day (600 mg in the morning and 300 mg at night); regular stool or constipation
Day 6: 900 mg per day (600 mg in the morning and 300 mg at night); loose stool
Day 7: Back off to 600 mg per day (300 mg in the morning and 300 mg at night) to go back to regular stool
Continue taking 600 mg per day until you develop loose stool, then back off again. If not, stay on this dose.
To settle on the best dose of magnesium, you need to listen to what feels right for your body. If you overdo it, you will experience loose stool or intestinal rumbling and then you will know to reduce your daily intake.
