Because magnesium is part of the green pigment (‘chlorophyll’) in plants, green leafy vegetables, such as spinach, and some fruits such as bananas are rich in magnesium.
Unrefined grains (e.g. oat bran and brown rice) and nuts (e.g. almonds and peanuts) also have high magnesium content.
It was reported from NHANES data (2003-2006) that white potatoes contribute 10% to magnesium intakes (62).
Meats and milk have intermediate magnesium content, while refined foods generally have the lowest magnesium content.
Water is a variable source of intake; harder water usually has a higher concentration of magnesium salts (4).
Most magnesium supplements are available as magnesium salts, such as magnesium oxide, magnesium gluconate, magnesium chloride, and magnesium citrate (57). Few multivitamin and multimineral supplements contain more than 100 mg magnesium due to its bulk.
Authored by Dr Peter Engel in 2010 and reviewed and revised by Angelika Friedel on 03.05.2017.
