Most people walk around magnesium deficient without having the slightest clue. Not because they live on coffee and vibes (though that doesn’t help), but because modern diets, soil depletion, chronic stress, and poor sleep team up to drain magnesium faster than you can replenish it.
And here’s the fun twist:
Low magnesium increases stress… and stress depletes magnesium.
A perfect loop, if your goal is feeling anxious, wired, tired, and unable to sleep.
Magnesium is the mineral that keeps cortisol in check, supports the nervous system, relaxes muscles, and helps your brain shift into “off” mode. Yet most people don’t realise how quickly it runs out - or that deficiency can masquerade as everything from anxiety to tight shoulders to poor sleep.
This article breaks down why magnesium deficiency is so common, how stress accelerates it, the symptoms no one connects to it, and how to actually fix the problem (not just buy another gummy with 12mg of magnesium in it).
Let’s get into it.
Why Magnesium Matters for Stress (A Quick Science Download)
Magnesium is involved in 300+ biochemical reactions, but the most important for stress are:
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Regulating the HPA axis (your stress-response system)
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Buffering cortisol release
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Calming the nervous system
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Supporting serotonin and GABA production
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Helping muscles relax
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Regulating heart rhythm
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Improving sleep depth
When magnesium is low, everything feels harder: thinking, sleeping, recovering, relaxing - even breathing properly.
And while people blame stress on workloads, relationships, deadlines, and endless Slack notifications, a hidden magnesium deficit often makes your body respond 10x more intensely to stressors that normally wouldn’t phase you.
The Real Reason You're Deficient Without Knowing It
Most deficiencies are obvious. Magnesium isn’t.
Here’s why you can be deficient without any clear warning signs:
1. Chronic Stress Burns Through Magnesium Faster Than Anything Else
Stress activates the sympathetic nervous system - the fight-or-flight response - which causes your body to use magnesium rapidly.
The more stressed you are, the more magnesium you burn.
The more magnesium you lose, the more stressed you feel.
Rinse, repeat.
If you’re wired at midnight, have racing thoughts, or feel “tired but tense,” this is probably you.
2. Modern Diets Don’t Contain Enough Magnesium
Thanks to soil depletion, foods that once contained magnesium now hold a fraction of their historical levels.
You’d need to eat unrealistic amounts of:
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spinach
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almonds
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pumpkin seeds
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beans
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dark chocolate
to hit optimal levels - and that assumes your gut absorbs magnesium well (spoiler: stress reduces absorption too).
3. Coffee, Alcohol, and Sugar Drain Magnesium
Magnesium is lost through urine, and caffeine, alcohol, and high-sugar meals all increase urinary excretion.
So if you’re running on lattes by day and a glass of wine at night, magnesium doesn’t stand a chance.
4. Hidden Deficiency Signs Don’t Look Like “Mineral Problems”
Instead, they look like:
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jaw tension
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restless legs
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eye twitching
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irritability
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sleep onset trouble
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anxiety or overwhelm
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Headaches
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muscle tightness
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palpitations
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fatigue that feels “electrical”
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stress hitting harder than it should
Most people never connect these with magnesium.
But ironically, these are some of the first symptoms clinicians look for.
5. Gut problems reduce magnesium absorption
Even mild issues - bloating, IBS-like symptoms, dysbiosis - impair mineral absorption.
This ties back to magnesium’s role in stress. If your gut is stressed, you absorb less magnesium, which worsens stress, which worsens gut function. Another loop.
If you want to dig deeper into the gut–stress relationship, our article How Gut Health Affects Cortisol Levels breaks it down in detail.
Magnesium and Cortisol: The Feedback Loop No One Talks About
Magnesium plays a direct role in calming your HPA axis - the hormonal “stress command centre.”
When magnesium is low:
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cortisol spikes higher
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cortisol stays elevated longer
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you feel more reactive to stress
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sleep becomes lighter and more fragmented
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your brain struggles to “switch off”
This is why magnesium is one of the most researched nutrients for mental calmness, relaxation, and sleep depth.
It’s not that magnesium makes you calm. It stops you from being unnecessarily stressed.
Which Type of Magnesium Do You Actually Need?
Here’s the truth:
Most supplements use magnesium oxide because it’s cheap - but your body barely absorbs it.
The forms with the strongest evidence for stress + sleep are:
Magnesium glycinate
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Highly absorbable
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Calms the nervous system
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Supports GABA
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Helps you fall asleep faster
Magnesium L-threonate
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Crosses the blood–brain barrier
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Supports cognition and mental clarity
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Great for stress-driven brain fog
Magnesium malate
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Energising
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Best for muscle tension and fatigue
Combining forms or pairing magnesium with glycine makes it even more effective because they work on the same calming pathways.
This is why the magnesium blend inside Moongreens DeepDrift™ uses highly absorbable forms (glycinate + amino-acid chelates), paired with glycine and ashwagandha for deeper nervous-system calming. It’s designed for people who want something noticeably effective, not a dusting of magnesium for marketing.
Stress, Sleep, and Magnesium: The Three-Way Relationship
Magnesium deficiency disrupts sleep. Poor sleep increases cortisol. Elevated cortisol burns through magnesium.
If any one of these three is out of balance, the rest spin out.
This is especially important if:
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you wake up at 2-4am
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your sleep feels shallow
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you struggle to fall asleep even when tired
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your nervous system "won’t turn off" at night
How to Fix a Magnesium Deficiency (and Stress) in 10-14 Days
Here’s the evidence-backed plan most people see results from quickly:
1. Increase magnesium intake (supplement + food is best)
A good supplement should give you 200–350mg of absorbable magnesium, ideally glycinate. Food alone won’t cut it for stress recovery - but combining both is ideal.
2. Pair magnesium with a nighttime routine
Breathwork, warm shower, low light, magnesium + glycine = a calmer nervous system.
3. Reduce caffeine after noon
Caffeine increases magnesium loss and keeps cortisol elevated later in the day.
4. Add more leafy greens, nuts, seeds, legumes
They won’t fix a deficiency alone, but they’ll stop the tank from emptying again.
5. Support gut health
Magnesium is pointless if you don’t absorb it. Prebiotics, fibre, and fermented foods help.
Why Moongreens Helps Fill the Magnesium Gap (Naturally & Effectively)
Moongreens DeepDrift™ was designed specifically for people dealing with:
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chronic stress
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poor sleep
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modern magnesium-depleting lifestyles
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cortisol dysregulation
Each scoop includes:
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Highly absorbable magnesium glycinate
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Glycine for deeper sleep + nervous-system calm
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KSM-66® ashwagandha for cortisol balance
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Inulin + prebiotic fibres for gut absorption
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L-theanine + calming botanicals for a smoother wind-down
It’s a practical way to restore magnesium and support the systems that rely on it - sleep, nervous system, and stress recovery - without stacking multiple supplements.
Bottom Line: You're Probably Deficient… and Fixing It Will Change Everything
Most people don’t realise magnesium deficiency is silently shaping their stress levels, sleep quality, mood, muscle tension, and ability to recover from everyday life.
But once you restore magnesium? Your system finally calms down.
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Stress feels manageable
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Sleep becomes deeper
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Evenings feel calmer
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Muscles relax
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Mental clarity improves
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Cortisol regulates itself again
It’s one of the quickest physiological “wins” you can give your body.
And if you want an effortless daily habit that restores magnesium and supports the stress-gut-sleep loop, Moongreens DeepDrift™ is built exactly for that.
