How does magnesium help with sleep?

The moment your head hits the pillow and your brain starts racing, magnesium is one mineral that may help the sleep system work better in the background. It's not a sleep aid in the way melatonin is — no pill, no dose — but it's doing critical work that may make sleep come easier when it's present in the diet.

Research suggests magnesium may help regulate the very systems that drive sleep. It's involved in GABA signaling — GABA is the neurotransmitter that helps calm neuronal firing — and it may help keep cortisol, the stress hormone, in check.

Magnesium is the fourth most abundant mineral in the body, but low intake is surprisingly common. Estimates suggest nearly half of adults in the U.S. don't get enough magnesium from food.

Many magnesium-rich foods — including leafy greens, nuts, legumes, seeds, and whole grains — have long been staples in traditional diets around the world. In Japanese cuisine, miso soup with seaweed is a long-standing staple.

In the kitchen, magnesium intake starts with choosing magnesium-rich foods consistently — and cooking technique can help preserve more of what's already there. Boiling vegetables can leach some magnesium into the water — steaming or sautéing helps preserve more of it.